US corporate bankruptcy filings accelerate further in December 2025

Large US corporate bankruptcies climbed to one of the highest monthly totals seen in five years in December, extending the 15-year high for annual filings set in November.

Monthly bankruptcy filings increased to 72 in December from 63 in November, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence data. It was the second-highest monthly volume since both July 2020 and August 2025, when 74 were recorded. The data includes companies with public debt and at least $2 million in assets or liabilities, as well as private companies with at least $10 million in assets or liabilities at the time of filing.

Full-year bankruptcies rose for the third consecutive year in 2025 to 785 filings, the highest since 828 were recorded in 2010.

Rising bankruptcies over the past few years have coincided with rising interest rates, which have climbed compared to the period following the Global Financial Crisis and through the COVID-19 pandemic.

The US Federal Reserve raised its benchmark interest rate to a 20-year high during a monetary policy tightening cycle in 2022 and 2023 to combat a post-pandemic surge in inflation, lifting interest rates for corporate and consumer debt. Companies with weaker credit profiles or poor liquidity consequently struggled to refinance existing debt and service new debt at higher rates, leading many to consider bankruptcy as a means to restructuring.

The Fed eased interest rates in the second half of 2024 and again in the second half of 2025. Expectations around the central bank's course of action in 2026 are uncertain.

Credit conditions

Although companies with weaker balance sheets faced challenges in 2025, overall corporate debt conditions remained resilient for both investment-grade companies with stronger credit ratings of BBB- and above and non-investment-grade companies with lower credit ratings below BBB-.

The median interest coverage ratio for non-investment-grade companies, also known as speculative-grade companies, rose to 3.14x in the third quarter of 2025 from 2.94x in the previous quarter, according to Market Intelligence data on companies tracked by S&P Global Ratings. The ratio is a key indicator of financial health, measuring earnings before interest and tax as a multiple of debt interest payments.

The median debt-to-equity ratio among speculative-grade companies also improved in the third quarter, declining 565 basis points from the second quarter to 114.85%. The ratio measures total debt as a percentage of shareholder equity, with a lower percentage reflecting less debt relative to equity.

– Download the charts in Excel format . – Check out our monthly Retail Market series for retail-specific bankruptcy data.

These fundamentals have partially supported investor appetite for high-yield corporate debt issued by speculative-grade companies. The option-adjusted spread of the S&P US High Yield Corporate Bond Index closed at 271 bps at the end of 2025 and dipped to 263 bps on Jan. 6, S&P Dow Jones Indices data shows. The spread has typically traded between 260 bps and 300 bps since early June 2025, slightly above the 10-year low of 241 bps recorded in January 2025.

The index tracks corporate bonds issued by speculative-grade companies. Spreads measure the difference in yields between bonds and comparable US Treasurys, with tighter spreads typically indicating strong demand and higher bond prices.

Spreads in the high-yield credit default swap market have also signaled high demand and lower perceived risk, with the CDX North American High Yield index dipping to a three-month low of 312.44 bps on Jan. 6, according to Market Intelligence data. The index references credit default swap pricing for a basket of debt issued by speculative-grade companies.

Credit default swaps are traded as insurance on bonds against the risk of default by the bond's issuer. Spreads for these contracts represent a risk premium, with narrower spreads signaling lower perceived risk.

Notable filings

United Site Services Inc. was the only company that had liabilities exceeding $1 billion to file for bankruptcy in December 2025.

The Massachusetts-based company, which provides on-site portable sanitation services including portable restrooms, said it would continue normal operations during bankruptcy as it looks to reduce its debt and strengthen its balance sheet for long-term financial stability. The company entered into a restructuring support agreement with a group of its lenders to facilitate the process.

Other notable bankruptcy announcements in December included a filing from iRobot Corp., the maker of the Roomba robot vacuum, with liabilities between $100 million and $500 million. It entered into a restructuring support agreement through which it will be acquired in a court-supervised process by two companies that collectively serve as iRobot's secured lender and primary contract manufacturer.

Sector breakdown

Bankruptcies were concentrated in the industrials and consumer discretionary sectors both in December and throughout 2025.

At least six large companies in the industrial sector filed for bankruptcy in December, bringing the annual total to 117. Ten filings were made in the consumer discretionary sector in December, bringing the sector's full-year total to 96.

This Data Dispatch is updated regularly. The previous edition was published Dec. 5.

Bankruptcy figures include public companies or private companies with public debt with a minimum of $2 million in assets or liabilities at the time of filing, in addition to private companies with at least $10 million in assets or liabilities. S&P Global Market Intelligence may remove companies from this list if it discovers that their total assets and liabilities do not meet the threshold requirement for inclusion.

This report may contain information about credit ratings issued by S&P Global Ratings. Descriptions in this report were not prepared by S&P Global Ratings