2010 saw corporate bankruptcies slip below 14,000 for the first time in four years, but the debt they left behind rose because of big names, particularly Japan Airlines, a credit research firm said Thursday.

Bankruptcies dropped 13.9 percent to 13,321, falling for the second consecutive year, Tokyo Shoko Research said.

While the drop in failures was attributable to government measures, such as the emergency loan guarantee system and other financial aid for small businesses, the pace of decline slowed toward the end of the reporting year as the effects of the steps faded.