Updated October 2026
2026 commercial bankruptcy filings, by the numbers
Business bankruptcy filings in 2026 are running ahead of 2025. Epiq AACER data, reported by ABF Journal on 2026-10-09, show 25,467 commercial filings across all chapters from January to September, up 7% from 23,789 in the same stretch of 2025. The figures below are Epiq's, quoted as published, without our own arithmetic layered on top.1
All chapters
Commercial filings: 25,467 through September
The all-chapter count covers every business case, from small Chapter 7 liquidations to large reorganizations. At 25,467 for January to September 2026, it sits 7% above the 23,789 recorded a year earlier. Epiq also breaks out Chapter 11 and Subchapter V separately. The sections below follow those two lines, since Chapter 11 is where every court-supervised data sale on this site has taken place so far.1
| Fact | Value and source |
|---|---|
| All commercial filings, 2026 | 25,467 commercial filings of all chapters from January to September 2026, up 7% from 23,789 |
Chapter 11
Reorganizations up 11% on the year, down in September
Commercial Chapter 11 filings reached 6,560 between 2026-01-01 and 2026-09-30, up 11% from 5,895 a year earlier.2
September itself went the other way: 648 filings, down 16% from 769 in September 2025. The comparison month is unusual, though. September 2025 included 109 related filings by a single long-term care pharmacy provider, which makes the base unusually high.3
| Fact | Value and source |
|---|---|
| Commercial Chapter 11 filings, 2026 | 6,560 commercial Chapter 11 filings from 2026-01-01 to 2026-09-30, up 11% from 5,895 a year earlier |
| Commercial Chapter 11 filings, September 2026 | 648 in September 2026, down 16% from 769 in September 2025 |
Small business
Subchapter V elections: the fastest-growing line
Small businesses electing Subchapter V made 2,442 elections from January to September 2026, up 46% from 1,672. September counted 276, up 38% from 200. Of the Epiq series on this page, it grew fastest.4
| Fact | Value and source |
|---|---|
| Subchapter V elections, 2026 | 2,442 Subchapter V elections from January to September 2026, up 46% from 1,672; 276 in September, up 38% from 200 |
Why the chapter matters
Who decides about the archive in each kind of case
The split between chapters matters to anyone following company data. In a Chapter 7 asset case, the US Courts guide says the trustee's primary role is liquidating nonexempt assets to maximize the return to unsecured creditors. In Chapter 11, the debtor usually remains in possession and may keep operating, so management chooses what goes up for sale.5,6
A Chapter 11 data sale still runs through the judge: the same guide says a sale outside the ordinary course of business needs the court's permission. Spirit's archive has followed that path, from a bidding procedures order on 2026-06-22 to a sale hearing now set for 2026-11-06.7,8,9
Outside the courts
Shutdowns that never reach a docket
Bankruptcy counts are only part of the picture. MIT Technology Review cites Carta and AngelList estimates showing annual startup shutdowns rising 26% to 56% in recent years. Our reading: many of those closures never become a bankruptcy case.10
Why we track this: every one of these companies, filed or not, leaves behind email, chat and document history. That archive has started to sell. MIT Technology Review reports that 47% of SimpleClosure's wind-down deals now include code or data, and Spirit Airlines' Chapter 11 archive drew a $10.0M winning bid from Google, still awaiting court approval as of 2026-10-14.11,12,9
FAQ
Questions, answered with sources
25,467 across all chapters, up 7% from 23,789 a year earlier.1
6,560 commercial Chapter 11 cases from January to September, up 11% from 5,895.2
September 2025 included 109 related filings by one long-term care pharmacy provider. Against that base, September 2026's 648 filings were down 16% from 769.3
2,442 from January to September, up 46% from 1,672.4
Carta and AngelList estimates cited by MIT Technology Review show annual shutdowns up 26% to 56% in recent years.10
SimpleClosure says 350+ companies have done so since AssetHub launched in April 2026.13
We do not answer legal questions. Ask the licensing company: their team reviews this with you before anything is signed.
We do not answer legal questions. Ask the licensing company: their team reviews this with you before anything is signed.
Before you sign
Legal questions go to the licensing company
We do not answer legal questions. Ask the licensing company before you sign: their team reviews these with you.
Questions for this kind of business
- Once a case is filed, who has authority to keep paying for the company's software accounts so the archive survives?
- Which proceeding fits: an ABC, Chapter 7, Chapter 11 or a dissolution?
Questions for any buyer
- Is the license exclusive, and for how long?
- Can you sublicense the data, and to whom?
- Which AI labs will receive it, and will you tell us?
- How long do you keep it, and how is it deleted?
- What is your liability cap, and who indemnifies whom?
- Will the contract ban re-identification of people in the data?
- Who removes personal data, by what method, and do we approve it first?