The Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy said 1,129 businesses filed for a bankruptcy or proposal in the third quarter, up 3.6 per cent from the second quarter.Businesses are being hit by the withdrawal of COVID-19 support, higher interest rates and softening consumer spending, according to the Canadian Association of Insolvency and Restructuring Professionals, or CAIRP.
Bolduc noted the numbers don't tell the full story, as business owners often choose to close their doors and walk away instead of going through the insolvency process. Again, the numbers may not tell the full story, Bolduc said:"The official statistics don’t reveal the full scale of serious indebtedness because many wait years before they consider legal debt-relief options."