We release the following statistics weekly (two weeks in arrears) to report on the level of company insolvency in Australia:
- Series 1: The first time a company enters external administration or has a controller appointed
- Series 2: All appointments over a company including the first, subsequent and transitional appointments
- raw data for Series 1 and Series 2 (published in the same Excel workbook as Series 1 and Series 2).
Series 1 data shows the number of companies entering into external administration or controller appointments for the first time.
We analyse and present the data in tables and charts according to the initial type of appointment, industry and state or territory.
We only include a company once in these statistics, regardless of whether it subsequently enters another form of external administration. The only exception occurs where a company, taken out of external administration (e.g. as the result of a court order), later re-enters external administration.
Series 2 data shows the total number of external administration and controller appointments recorded, including the first, subsequent and transitional appointments.
We analyse and present the data in tables and charts, categorised by type of appointment, industry and state or territory.
As a company can be under more than one form of external administration or controller appointment at any one time and can progress from one type to another, these statistics can include a company more than once. For this reason, the number of external administration and controller appointments (Series 2) will always be greater than the number of companies going into external administration for the first time (Series 1). See examples below.
- A court may appoint a provisional liquidator to a company. Later, the provisional liquidator’s appointment may conclude when the court appoints a liquidator. These roles differ, and the law treats them as separate appointments. Both Series 1 and Series 2 statistics record the appointment of the provisional liquidator, but only Series 2 (all external administration and controller appointment statistics) will count the subsequent appointment of the court liquidator. Note that simplified liquidations are not a separate appointment but are disclosed separately as they follow a simplified process.
- When a company goes into voluntary administration and creditors resolve that the company enter into a deed of company arrangement. Both Series 1 and Series 2 statistics record the initial appointment of the voluntary administrator, but only Series 2 (all external administration and controller appointment statistics) will count the subsequent appointment of the deed of company arrangement.
The raw data for Series 1 and Series 2 (see final tab on Excel workbook) provides the following details of all external administration and controller appointments:
- ACN and organisation name
- the person appointed (lodging party only, so will not list joint appointees), or company appointed and their ACN (possible for controllers or managing controllers only)
- appointment type
- start date of the appointment and relevant financial year
- industry by the Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC) code (by division, subdivision and group)
- state (or territory) of incorporation
- principal place of business (state or territory, area and postcode)
- an indicator for whether an appointment was included in Series 1 and/or Series 2 data.
Series 1 and 2 statistics exclude members’ voluntary liquidations. This is because these administrations involve the winding up of solvent companies rather than insolvent companies and are now published in Series 5 statistics.
We prefer Series 1 statistics to be used when explaining trends in corporate business failures – they are a more accurate measure of the number of companies subject to a formal appointment because a company might appear more than once in Series 2 statistics (e.g. if it were under more than one form of external administration).
View and download Series 1 and Series 2 statistics