Business closures in South Africa have been lower following the pandemic than after the global financial crisis (GFC). While the lockdowns had a big impact on services industries and tourism, the GFC had a broader impact across industries. Data from Statistics South Africa suggests that the number of insolvencies and liquidations has been lower over recent years than before the GFC. Without official data on the number of registered firms over time, it is hard to know whether this reflects a decline in the number of firms or not. World Bank data suggests that there has been an increase in the number of new businesses registered over time.
Footnote
Unfortunately the CIPC did not respond to our request for data. New business data from the World Bank for South Africa is also not up to date.
