The number of Canadians filing for insolvency reached its highest level of any quarter since 2009 at the tail end of the Great Recession, according to the latest government insolvency data.
A total of 37,121 Canadians filed for insolvency in the first three months of 2026, compared with the prior peak of 40,589 in the third quarter of 2009, according to data from the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy.
Of the insolvencies filed in the first quarter this year, 7,576 resulted in bankruptcies, while 29,545 ended in proposals, the data shows. A proposal is defined by the agency as: “An offer to creditors to settle debts under conditions other than the existing terms. A proposal is a formal agreement under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act.”…