During the first half of 2025, 157,600 sole proprietors (SP) ceased operations in Ukraine, which exceeds the number of newly established businesses by 20,000 during the same period. Among the closed businesses, nearly one-third – 33% – operated for less than two years, and over 5,300 entrepreneurs shut down their activities just weeks after registration. The highest number of closures was recorded in the retail and information technology sectors.
This is reported by Business • Media
Regional Trends in the Creation and Closure of Sole Proprietorships
Kyiv remains the leader in both the number of new and liquidated businesses: in six months, 18,800 SPs were opened in the capital, while 20,600 were closed. Kharkiv and Dnipropetrovsk regions ranked second in terms of closures, with 13,600 each. Meanwhile, a positive balance – where the number of new registrations exceeds the number of closures – was observed in Rivne, Lviv, Kyiv, Ivano-Frankivsk, and Volyn regions.
Reasons for the Record Rate of Business Closures
Experts note that the sharp increase in the number of closed SPs in 2025 is due to a combination of several factors:
- A temporary suspension of registry operations in January-February, which forced entrepreneurs to close their SPs to avoid accumulating tax debt.
- Changes in tax legislation that affected the conditions for doing business.
- A significant portion of entrepreneurs who left for abroad in 2022-2024 ultimately decided to cease operations in Ukraine.
“In the first six months of 2025, 157,600 sole proprietors ceased operations in Ukraine – this is 20,000 more than the number of new registrations. At the same time, 33% of closed businesses operated for less than two years, and 5,300 ceased operations just weeks after registration. The highest number of businesses closed in the retail and IT sectors.”