The negotiated settlement of the crisis saved 777 companies and 4,000 workers

Among the latest to have embarked on this process is Natuzzi, following the crisis affecting its sofas. Among the companies that have, on the other hand, recently completed this process – and successfully so – are Coin and Furla, amongst others. The use of negotiated settlements to resolve crises is steadily increasing, as are the number of successful outcomes.

In the first eight months of 2026, 1,128 new applications have already been lodged, out of a total of 5,084 cases opened since 15 November 2021, when the new scheme was introduced following the entry into force of Decree-Law 118 of 24 August, during the Draghi government. The success rate currently stands at 23 per cent: 777 favourable outcomes out of 3,453 cases resolved. Behind these figures lie some 45,800 jobs saved, thanks to the restructuring of companies, according to Unioncamere, the driving force behind the new out-of-court scheme.

Among the most recent cases, the precision engineering company in the automotive sector, Tfm automazione, with a turnover of 60 million and 250 employees; and Colines, which manufactures machinery for processing plastics and rubber, with 150 staff. Then there is Edim spa, specialising in metal casting, which was taken over by the Bosch Group along with its 340 employees. And looking back, there are many other stories of brands, some well-known, others less so, that have completed this process: from Bricoteam, with its Bricofer retail outlets, to Gala spa, an energy operator, and the plant engineering firm Nagest. Among the most complex cases cited is that of Egea, a negotiated group reorganisation.

Of the 2,676 cases that ended unsuccessfully, however, in the majority of cases (54 per cent) this was due to the failure of negotiations, sometimes to a lack of prospects for recovery (839 cases), and in other instances to the entrepreneur withdrawing from the process (15 per cent). Experts analyse that the timeliness of the application – which is often lacking – relative to the onset of the crisis is decisive in determining the outcome of the process. However, the experience of the appointed experts also plays a role (in the vast majority of cases, 78 per cent, these are accountants, according to Unioncamere’s figures; followed by lawyers, 20 per cent, whilst very few are business executives or employment consultants). And ‘the small number of tax settlements – the experts complain – approved by the Revenue Agency’ is a key factor. However, in recent weeks, the number of tax settlement agreements signed has increased (53).

“The Observatory’s data highlight that a culture of prevention is fundamental to resolving corporate crises, and the success of negotiated settlements – managed by the Chambers of Commerce – amply demonstrates this,” comments the president of Unioncamere, Andrea Prete, who emphasises the importance of speed. “The more swiftly and effectively we intervene, the more successful our actions will be. Over the past year, these settlements have saved one in four companies, safeguarding the jobs of over 45,000 employees, not to mention their affiliated companies, their suppliers and the wider supply chain.”