Estonia

Update on Estonia’s Insolvency Statistics for 2025

Sorainen's Head of Insolvency & Restructuring and Counsel and INSOL Europe Country Coordinator, Mari Agarmaa‑Jentson, and Assistant Lawyer Eliza Belova have summarised the recent insolvency statistics in Estonia.

After three difficult years, the Estonian economy is showing early signs of recovery and inflation has begun to moderate. However, this gradual improvement has not resulted in significant changes in the insolvency landscape, which has remained broadly stable. Estonia’s long-term trends continue to hold: since 2012, the country has recorded an average of 147 bankruptcies per year. In 2025, this pattern persisted, with 154 declared bankruptcies, representing a 4% decrease compared with 2024. As of 31 December 2025, assetless insolvencies resulted in an estimated €73.5 million in creditor losses, including €18 million from cases initiated in earlier years.

Business activity remained dynamic. In 2025, 27,394 new legal entities were registered, bringing the total number of registered entities to 366,505 as of 11 February 2026. Of these, 643 entities had been declared bankrupt as of that date. Court statistics were similarly steady, with 1,973 bankruptcy petitions (for legal persons) and insolvency petitions (for natural persons) filed in 2025, compared with 2,059 petitions in 2024. 

Preventive and restructuring measures remained relatively unpopular. Courts opened only 20 reorganisation proceedings in 2025, compared with 38 in 2024, while debt restructuring proceedings also saw limited use, with 8 cases in 2025 compared with 5 in 2024. A persistent challenge in Estonia continues to be the late filing of bankruptcy petitions, which often leaves estates without sufficient assets to cover the costs of proceedings.

Overall, Estonia’s insolvency landscape remained stable throughout 2025, despite the first signs of economic recovery. It remains to be seen whether the improving macroeconomic outlook will translate into noticeable changes in insolvency trends in 2026.

Main sources:

1.     Economic forecast for Estonia - Economy and Finance - European Commission

2.     Number of legal entities | e-Äriregister

3.     New legal entities | e-Äriregister

4.     Bancruptcies | e-Äriregister

5.     2025 | Maksejõuetuse teenistus

6.     Court procedural statistics

Update on Estonia’s Insolvency Statistics as at 30 June 2023