According to KfW reports, there were fewer business start-ups in both full-time and part-time operations: The number of full-time start-ups fell by 6 percent to 222,000, while part-time start-ups fell by 12 percent to 328,000. The start-up rate declined from 119 to 108 start-ups per 10,000 people aged 18-64 years.
“Business start-ups are central drivers of structural and technological change”
“Hardly having temporarily overcome the corona dip, entrepreneurial activity in Germany is unfortunately already declining again in 2022”,
says Fritzi Köhler-Geib, Chief Economist at KfW.
“For the German economy, this is bad news, because business start-ups are central drivers of structural and technological change – and they support the future viability of the entire economy. Especially with regard to green and digital transformation, Germany needs new companies with fresh and innovative ideas. Strengthening the entrepreneurial spirit again remains an elementary challenge that requires all political, social, and economic actors to work together.”
The share of business start-ups based on the perception of a favorable business opportunity fell in 2022 compared to the previous year by 11 percentage points to 71 percent and is now as low as it was in 2018. Correspondingly, the share of business start-ups due to lack of better employment alternatives has increased from 15 percent to 24 percent.
