“6 voivodeships were on the podium in the latest edition of the Reliability Ranking of Polish enterprises,” the National Debt Register Economic Information Office (KRD BIG) reported. It was explained that the ranking was prepared by Rzetelna Firma experts based on KRD data.
The creators of the ranking pointed out that this was the first such situation in the several-year history of this ranking, as the first place was taken ex aequo by the following voivodeships: Świętokrzyskie, Podlaskie and Lublin, gaining 38 points in the ranking. They noted that this is the highest result recorded in the current ranking. They added that while the first two voivodeships maintained their position, the Lublin region advanced from 2nd position in the previous ranking.
KRD also reported that second place went to companies from Małopolska and Podkarpacie, and the podium was taken by entrepreneurs from the Opole region.
The last three voivodeships in the table have not changed: the lowest reliability was demonstrated by entrepreneurs (counting from the end) from the Masovian Voivodeship (6 points), the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship (10 points) and the Silesian Voivodeship (11 points). The Łódź voivodeship recorded a significant decline, moving two places down to 4th from the bottom.
“The final classification was determined by the sum of points scored in three categories,” noted Rzetelna Firma expert Katarzyna Starostka, quoted in the publication.
“The highest debt per 1,000 companies was recorded in the Masovian Voivodeship – PLN 3,884,602, followed by the Silesian Voivodeship (PLN 3,831,878) and the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship (PLN 3,595,099). At the opposite extreme are the Podkarpackie Voivodeships (2,313 PLN 903), Podlaskie (PLN 2,326,973) and Lesser Poland (PLN 2,336,798),” the authors of the ranking indicated.
They reported that in the case of the average debtor's debt, the highest values were recorded in the Masovian (PLN 39,165), Greater Poland (PLN 37,785) and Łódź (PLN 37,139) voivodeships. At the opposite end of the table there are the following voivodeships: West Pomeranian Voivodeship (PLN 29,706), Lubuskie Voivodeship (PLN 30,171) and Lubelskie Voivodeship (PLN 31,167).
The ranking data shows that the highest percentage of indebted people was recorded in the Silesian Voivodeship (10.38%), followed by the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship (10.01%) and the Lower Silesian Voivodeship (9.98%). However, the lowest percentage of indebted companies is in the following voivodeships: Podkarpackie (6.15%), Małopolskie (6.36%) and Podlaskie (6.41%).
“The second half of last year was not good for the economy. In many industries, production and sales decreased and debt increased,” said the authors of the ranking. They reported that at the end of 2023, the value of corporate debts registered in the National Debt Register reached PLN 9.6 billion, which is an increase of PLN 154 million compared to the data from June 2023.
KRD data shows that the largest share in this debt is held by companies from Masovia, which should return over PLN 2 billion to creditors. “Equally significant amounts are owed by entrepreneurs from Silesia – PLN 1.2 billion and by enterprises registered in the Greater Poland Voivodeship – almost PLN 1 billion,” it was reported.
Entrepreneurs from the Opole region have the smallest arrears – PLN 164 million, voivodeship. Świętokrzyskie – PLN 170 million and Podlasie – PLN 172 million.
The creators of the ranking assessed that the most reliable voivodeships were dominated by entrepreneurs from less economically developed regions. The exception here is Małopolska and partly Podkarpacie, emphasizing that the two voivodeships in which the most enterprises operate, i.e. Masovia and Silesia, are consistently at the bottom of the table.
“Unreliability is an inherent feature of economic development. Without a doubt, where there is a large number of companies, they are subjected to greater pressure from competitors, which in turn forces them to make more risky economic decisions,” commented the president of the National Debt Register BIG, Adam Łącki. As he stated, this higher risk in the event of failure results in losses and, consequently, debt. “Sometimes saving from bankruptcy comes at the expense of reliability and affects the contractors of such a company,” Łącki noted.
However, the expert emphasized that the example of the Lesser Poland Voivodeship, which ranks 4th in Poland in terms of the number of registered companies, shows that economic development and ethics can be reconciled.
“Apart from economics, local culture is also very important, as is a certain cult of reliability, honesty, functioning at one's own expense and not at someone else's expense. This is typical of voivodeships in the east and south-east of Poland,” adds Adam Łącki. In his opinion, interpersonal relationships play an important role here – “the reputation of a reliable payer is also important for maintaining a position on the market.”
