Opinion

The ‘insolvency armageddon’ is all hype

Concern about the record number of company failures is not only overblown, but the surge in businesses going bust is probably a good thing.

Michael ReadEconomics correspondent

Sep 16, 2024 – 1.03pm

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Online bookseller Booktopia and airline Regional Express have little in common, apart from being terrible investments for shareholders lately.

So terrible, they were among the 1238 businesses in Australia forced to appoint administrators in July, with both variously blaming labour shortages, weak consumer demand and industry-specific headwinds for their plight.

Michael Read is the Financial Review's economics correspondent, reporting from the federal press gallery at Parliament House. He was previously an economist at the Reserve Bank of Australia and at UBS.