Source: Radio New Zealand
Construction remained the leading industry for company liquidations. RNZ / Nate McKinnon
More companies went into liquidation in March 2026 than in any other March since 2015, new data shows.
Centrix’s latest update showed 3023 liquidations in the year to March.
In the month, there were 286 company liquidations and 308 insolvencies.
Construction remained the leading industry for company liquidations, with 768 firms liquidated in the past year, although this represented just 0.9 percent of all registered construction companies.
Hospitality was the second-largest contributor, recording 399 liquidations – an increase of 49 percent compared with the previous year and 1.3 percent of all hospitality businesses.
Inland Revenue has been a significant driver of insolvencies as it chased unpaid tax debt.
It has started to report businesses’ debt to credit agencies, so would-be lenders have more visibility of a company’s financial situation. Inland Revenue is usually ranked first among creditors, if a business goes into liquidation.
Centrix managing director Keith McLaughlin said the data was starting to be registered with Centrix, but the full picture was not yet reflected.
Business credit defaults were down 16 percent year-on-year in Centrix’s data. He said that could indicate that the liquidation rate could improve in future.
“It really is a tidy-up from the historical past,” he said. “When we look at arrears in the business sector, they are down.
“The trend is positive and, if arrears are lower now than they have been, that will ultimately flow through to liquidation, which is the back end of the process.
“What we’re trying to achieve is a little bit more transparency around IRD debt, because you can do a credit report and the credit book comes up saying there’s no arrears, but if there is tax debt there, it’s probably a false impression
“I think, until there’s total transparency around IRD debts, there is always that cloud hanging over you saying, ‘Well, is there a debt out there to the IRD that we’re not aware of?’.
“That creates a domino effect, because if somebody owes money to the Inland Revenue, if they ultimately go through, then that creates a domino impact on the market, where they don’t pay their creditors and consequently they get into strife, so it’s quite important to have full transparency on any outstanding liabilities.”
Manufacturing sector improves
Manufacturing showed improvement, with liquidations down 5 percent.
McDonald Vague insolvency practitioner Keaton Pronk said the March quarter was the busiest in the past 10-15 years for winding up applications and corporate insolvency appointments.
“It looks like this trend will continue into April, with winding up applications above past Aprils and insolvency appointments tracking that way too.”
Centrix said the “other services” sector, which included more than 26,000 registered companies, was an area of concern.
Over the past year, 174 companies across the sector were placed into liquidation, up from 124 the previous year – a 40 percent year-on-year increase.
The sharpest pressure remained in automotive repair and maintenance, where 74 companies were liquidated over the past 12 months, compared with 27 a year earlier. This reflected continuing cost pressure, softer demand and weaker discretionary spending conditions.
Centrix said overall consumer credit demand was still above last year’s level, but inquiry volumes were starting to ease. Activity was holding up in home loans, vehicle lending and personal loans.
There were still 95,000 consumers more than 90 days behind on payments. 123RF
Consumer arrears down
The news was better for households.
Consumer arrears fell again in March to their lowest level since September 2023, while mortgage arrears also moved lower.
There were still 95,000 consumers more than 90 days behind on payments and pressure remained more visible in unsecured lending.
Kawerau had the highest arrears rate at 17.55 percent, followed by Wairoa at 17.52 percent and Ōpōtiki at 16.56 percent.
Personal loan arrears were still elevated and personal loan hardship cases remained well above year-ago levels.
There are currently 13,400 accounts reported in financial hardship, down 300 from the previous month. The broader hardship trend, which had been rising since late 2022, has continued to ease in recent months.
“We are seeing a softer demand for credit, particularly in the discretionary spending areas, and I think that’s a sign that households continue to keep a tight control over their budgets and, rather than go into arrears on their payments, they’ll cut back on discretionary spending,” McLaughlin said.
Buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) arrears improved and were lower than those of personal loans.
In 2025, 245,000 consumers opened their first credit product. Of those, 32 percent did so using BNPL products.
McLaughlin said that had been a noticeable shift away from other forms of credit as a first experience.
“It used to be your telephone or your rent, but it’s now buy-now-pay-later, so it’s a very soft entry into the credit market, because it’s generally a lower amount and for a shorter period of time.”
Sign up for Money with Susan Edmunds, a weekly newsletter covering all the things that affect how we make, spend and invest money
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
