Issue 388 (Week ending 05/02/2020)

• 22,774 companies formed in 2019, up 1.2% on 2018; the most popular industry was professional services, followed by financial services
• Dublin, Cork, and Galway the most popular counties for company start-ups
• 18% decrease in insolvencies, total of 617 compared to 756 in 2018. Decrease in insolvencies across all sectors
• Vision-net MD Christine Cullen: "It is both the responsibility of Irish companies and the Irish Government to work in tandem to ensure that there are measures in place to safeguard the future of the economy."

2019 marked the third consecutive record-breaking year for new company start-ups according to our data here at CRIF Vision-net.

New figures from the Business Barometer: 2020 Annual Review show that new company start-ups in Ireland reached a high of 22,774 in 2019, the highest number in our 29-year history.

Company start-ups: Industry Insights

Last year saw Irish company start-ups exceed company closures by over 10,400.

The increase in start-ups for 2019 rose by 1.2% compared to 2018 (22,774 vs 22,493) with professional services accounting for the majority (4,741 up 3.6%) of all start-ups in 2019.

The financial sector (3,144, down 5.5%) was the second most popular industry for start-ups, followed by social and personal services (2,996, up 11%), construction (2,356, down 2%), and wholesale and retail (2,055, up 5%).

In terms of locations, Dublin remains one of the most attractive spots for business start-ups, with almost half (47%) of all new start-ups located within the capital in 2019. Cork (10%), Galway (3.9%), Limerick (3.2%) and Kildare (3.1%) make up the remainder of the top five, accounting for a combined total of 2,379 start-ups.

Insolvencies

Bar a slight increase in 2017, there has been a steady year-on-year reduction in Irish insolvencies since 2011.

2019's company insolvency figure is down 18% on the previous year (617 vs 756), with a decrease of 19% in company insolvencies per month (51 vs 63).

Professional services proved to be the most insolvent industry, accounting for 98 insolvencies (or 16% of all insolvencies), followed by the wholesale and retail industry (87, or 14%), hospitality (66, or 11%), construction (56, or 9%), and manufacturing (41, or 7%).

For more information on the above plus much more on Closures, Insolvencies & Bad Debts check out CRIF Vision-Net's Annual Review 2020!