Experts predict economic ‘bloodbath’ when JobKeeper, JobSeeker ends In April, the number of businesses going bust actually decreased. But in roughly 100 days, an economic bloodbath will commence. This recession just got weirder: Despite hard times, companies are somehow not going broke. Everything is topsy-turvy. But are we just saving up pain for later? I keep an eye on the ASIC insolvency database, and when I opened it to check the April statistics, I couldn’t believe my eyes. April 2020 was a month of insane economic uncertainty and gross financial turbulence. But the number of businesses going broke went down. Not up. Down. April was a record. Not only is it lower than April last year, it’s lower than each April before that back to 2013. In fact, the number of businesses going bust in April this year is the third lowest month in the whole database, which goes back to 2013. We not only managed to prevent a bloodbath, we’ve kept more businesses alive than would usually go broke. The economy is in recession. Things are supposed to be going to hell in a hand basket. So how come businesses aren’t going broke? JobKeeper is a big reason for the high survival rate. Instead of paying their employees, suffering businesses can get the government to pay, up to $1500 a fortnight. That dramatically relaxes their financial situation.