The business restructuring market in France

According to Altares, 14,652 proceedings were opened in France between 1 July and 30 September 2026, 0.5% more than a year earlier, after 17,486 in the second quarter (+5.4%). Since January, 52,700 companies have failed. In the second quarter, about two thirds of the companies that failed over the previous six months went straight into liquidation, leaving little room for restructuring among the smallest firms in France.

In France, 7,822 amicable proceedings (mandat ad hoc and conciliation) were opened in 2023, up 4%, according to the review Fusions et acquisitions of September 2024. That year, 57,729 collective proceedings were opened (+36%) and 243,700 jobs were threatened, over 70% more than in 2022, driven by rising failures among mid-sized companies. Amicable restructuring remains confidential and mostly concerns mid-sized companies.

The Comité interministériel de restructuration industrielle (CIRI, the French interministerial committee for industrial restructuring) supports companies in difficulty with more than 400 employees in France. According to Fusions et acquisitions of September 2025, it registered about 60 referrals in 2024 and handled around a hundred cases representing 82,000 jobs. Industrial companies make up 40% of cases, and the companies involved average 1,800 employees in France. The Casino and Atos cases weighed heavily on these statistics.

Business restructuring in France brings together regulated professions and private advisers. According to the Conseil national des administrateurs judiciaires et des mandataires judiciaires (CNAJMJ, the French national council of court-appointed administrators and trustees), 170 administrators practise in 75 firms and 310 trustees in 190 firms, about 500 professionals employing nearly 3,000 staff. Lawyers, financial advisers, investment banks and communication agencies work alongside them: at Vae Solis Communications, restructuring accounts for 10 to 12% of revenue, according to Stratégies (February 2025).

According to Fusions et acquisitions of September 2025, industry accounts for 40% of the companies supported by the CIRI in France in 2024. The medico-social sector, notably nurseries and Ehpad (care homes), remains very present, as do automotive subcontracting, chemicals and metallurgy, hit by the health crisis and then the energy crisis. Services, agriculture and retail are also among the sectors turning to business restructuring in France.

A PDF report in French, 2026 edition, organised in six chapters: definition and scope of restructuring, market size and dynamics, demand from companies in difficulty, supply and players, the legal framework and constraints, and the outlook.

Altares insolvency statistics, data from regulated professions such as the CNAJMJ, public information on the CIRI and trade press articles from the IndexPresse database. Every figure comes with its source and period.

Yes. The study is updated before it is sent, within 48 hours at most: it includes the latest published data, and every figure comes with its source and period.

Advisory firms, lawyers, investment banks and interim managers, court-appointed administrators and trustees, managers of companies in difficulty, and investors and lenders who need to understand the business restructuring market in France.

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