# Professor Edward Altman predicts a historic number of defaults driven by the coronavirus will result in a peak in 2021

1 Faculty News April 22, 2020 ![Bloomberg logo](/sites/default/files/styles/246w/public/assets/images/bloomberg192x144.jpg?itok=yV529lwz)>

Excerpt from [Bloomberg](https://news.bloomberglaw.com/bankruptcy-law/distressed-daily-altman-sees-peak-defaults-coming-in-2021) -- "Unprecedented debt issuance over the years could lead to a historic number of defaults driven by the coronavirus and the drop in oil prices, with a peak coming in 2021, according to Dr. [Edward Altman](https://www.stern.nyu.edu/faculty/bio/edward-altman). 'I’m afraid we are going to have a large number of bankruptcies in the next 12 to 24 months,' the Stern School of Business, New York University professor emeritus said in a webinar sponsored by the school on Tuesday."

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