In the first half of 2025, Ukraine saw a noticeable increase in the number of closed individual entrepreneurs. Over six months, 157,600 entrepreneurs ceased their activities, which is 20,000 more than the number of newly established entrepreneurs during the same period. A significant portion of them—33%—had been in the market for less than two years, and 5,300 businesses closed just a few weeks after opening. The highest number of closures was recorded in the retail and information technology sectors.
This is reported by Finway
Regional Dynamics of Business Closures and Openings
Kyiv remains the leader in both the number of new businesses created and the number of closures. During the first half of the year, 18,800 new individual entrepreneurs were registered in the capital, while 20,600 closed. The second highest number of closures was in the Kharkiv and Dnipropetrovsk regions, where 13,600 entrepreneurs ceased their activities since the beginning of the year. Meanwhile, the Rivne, Lviv, Kyiv, Ivano-Frankivsk, and Volyn regions registered more new entrepreneurs than closures, indicating a positive trend in the development of small businesses in these areas.
Main Reasons for the Increase in Closures
Experts note that the record number of closures is due to a number of factors. Among the main reasons are the temporary suspension of state registries in January-February, which forced many entrepreneurs to close their businesses to avoid accumulating tax debts. Additionally, changes in tax legislation and the final decision of some entrepreneurs who left for abroad in 2022-2024 to close their businesses also played a role.
“In the first six months of 2025, 157,600 individual entrepreneurs ceased operations in Ukraine—20,000 more than the number of new registrations. Of these, 33% of closed businesses lasted less than two years, and 5,300 stopped operating just a few weeks after registration. The majority of businesses closed in the retail and IT sectors.”