If you own a small business and the payments are stacking up, you’ll see that some of these figures are going to depress you quite a lot. At Delancey Street we negotiate with merchant cash advance funders, lenders and other business creditors on behalf of owners under pressure, and these are the ten numbers from the past year we think you should know before 2026 gets any further along. It’s easy to think a financial crisis starts with one big mistake. It doesn’t. It builds, and the filing data shows it building.
Total US Bankruptcy Filings
The first number is 565,759. Total US bankruptcy filings in 2025 reached that figure, up from 508,953 in 2024. An 11% increase - nearly identical to the growth from 2023 to 2024. But the timing is different this time.
That timing is the second number: 45,953. In December 2025, filings were 45,953, up 20% over December 2024. It’s unusual for December to be higher than November, usually flat or even lower. A late-year surge like that can be a telling sign of what is coming. Tracking the monthly counts will be essential to stay ahead of any sudden changes.
Number three is 19%. The number of Chapter 7 bankruptcies (both consumer and business) increased by 19% in 2025 compared to the number of filings in 2024. Chapter 7 bankruptcy is a liquidation. The business ceases operation and its assets are sold. A jump that size may mean more businesses are reaching the point where shutting down and liquidating is the only viable path.
Number four is 15%. Chapter 13 (consumer) cases jumped by 15% in 2025. Probably because there were more foreclosures nationwide. That is a household number, but households are your customers.
Number five is 6%. Chapter 11 cases increased 6%. Chapter 11 is a form of bankruptcy that lets a company continue to operate while reorganizing. The number of Chapter 11 bankruptcies increased at a much slower pace than Chapter 7 cases.
Number six is 31,810, the count of commercial bankruptcy filings in 2025. A few people might be thinking, “I thought business bankruptcy filings were down.” In fact, the opposite is true: filings rose from 30,201 to 31,810, an increase of 1,609. One caution on the comparison: 2024 figures may be skewed. Large businesses file with many subsidiaries, each considered a separate entity, and then the cases are administratively consolidated. There did not seem to be as many of those consolidated cases in 2025.
Number seven is six, the industries at the top of the list for rising bankruptcies: healthcare, restaurants, real estate, energy, aviation and retail. If you run a business in one of them and have seen the number of bankruptcies start to rise in your sector, you’re not alone. It’s not just you.
Number eight is nine, the companies named among the largest commercial bankruptcies of 2025: Sunnova Energy, First Brands Group, Omnicare, Spirit Aviation, Genesis Health, Everstream Solutions, New Rite Aid, Prospect Medical Holdings, and F21 OpCo. If you are in these industries, be careful.
Why the rise? Interest rates come first. Higher interest rates caused rates on variable-rate loans, credit cards, and mortgages to jump, making it harder for consumers and businesses to pay what they owed. The Fed has been cutting rates, but the impact remains, affecting people’s ability to pay their bills. Even when you provide a good service, customers’ ability to pay can be a real threat to your bottom line. Prices on some products have been creeping up. We’ve all read stories about people struggling to get by on groceries and other essentials, so they’re reducing spending on non-essentials. Households are also carrying high credit card and auto loan delinquencies across the board. The auto repossession rate is at one of the highest levels it has reached, and mortgage and auto lenders are expected to be aggressive with foreclosures and repossessions.
2026 to Be Another Year of Increases
Number nine is 20%. One national review of 2025 filings expects 2026 to be another year of increases. Looking at the last three months of 2025 and the economy as it currently stands, a 20% increase in filings overall would not be a surprise. On the commercial side, it expects an increase in both Chapter 7 and Chapter 11 cases. The political landscape will significantly influence the size of the increase. Still, with many factors at play 2026 is hard to predict.
The tenth number is a month: May. We’ll have a new chair of the Federal Reserve. A sharp cut in interest rates would be expected to follow. We don’t know yet what the impact will be on the economy or the stock market. The Supreme Court has ruled on Trump tariffs. There could be rebates; maybe prices will go down and companies will hire again. Supply chain and weather problems are not going away, either. Early extreme winter weather has hit companies’ operations, and insurance claims and costs are expected to rise. And then there’s the end of the Affordable Care Act benefits. That means that health insurance is going to cost a whole lot more for some consumers unless Congress does something about it. So, they’re having to decide whether to pay their other bills or buy health insurance.
Cash Flow Issues
So what do you do with ten numbers? For a small business, cash flow is king, and if daily debit payments are causing cash flow issues, you need to get on it sooner rather than later. One thing we would steer you away from: If you take a loan to pay a debt and you don’t pay the loan off, you have a bigger problem and won’t get there by taking another loan. Get advice from someone who knows how to deal with the funders before it becomes a disaster. We’re not a law firm, and we don’t sell loans. Our advisors work with MCA funders and lenders to settle your business debts for less than the full amount owed.
Most owners think they don’t need bankruptcy. Or more simply, don’t want it. And may not. But bankruptcy is sometimes the right answer, and it is a legal process, with protections, obligations, and fees. If bankruptcy (e.g. Subchapter V) is the better option for you, our advisors will tell you on the first call, and then refer you to a vetted independent attorney. Either way, don’t wait for things to get worse. A first consultation with us is free and confidential.
