Two records, one story
The headline number looks like a vote of confidence. 62,061 companies were incorporated in the year to July 2026, the highest annual figure since 2021, according to Companies Office data reported by RNZ. New company registrations in the first quarter of 2026 were also up 9.6% on the same quarter in 2024, confirming this isn’t a one-month blip.
But businesses are also dying at a clip not seen in over a decade. The year to March 2026 saw 3,023 companies placed into liquidation, edging past the 15-year high set in 2025, and liquidations have climbed more than 70% over three years. March 2026 alone recorded 286 liquidations, the worst March in 11 years.
The two trends aren’t fighting each…