Closing a company? Its data may still be worth something

01Your records may outlive the company

A closed company's records are often exactly what buyers want: finished histories, with nobody still working in the systems. When a company closes, its records usually sit on old drives and lapsing SaaS accounts until someone deletes them. But years of tickets, project files, SOPs and CRM history are exactly what AI companies license to learn how work gets done. micro1 now runs a programme for companies that are no longer operating: in its words, "We are acquiring data from companies that are no longer operating."

02What micro1 publishes

• $100K–$2M+ for approved data packages. A published range, not an offer.
• 30+ employees. The same minimum as micro1's main programme.
• Mainly English records, any industry.
• A referral reward for whoever introduces the company: $75,000 for deals up to $1M, or 7.5% above.

micro1 publishes no separate application page for it. Companies register through the same company route as its main programme, and micro1 reviews each one.

03A recent example: Spirit Airlines

In August 2026, Google won the bankruptcy auction for Spirit Airlines' internal data with a $10M bid. Unions and more than 120 US lawmakers objected over the employee data in it, and court approval was pending at the time of writing. It shows both sides: a closed company's records can be worth real money, and employee data is where the objections come.

04Who can act for a closed company?

This is the first question, and it decides everything else. A licence is a contract, so someone has to have authority to sign it for the company.

• In liquidation or administration: the insolvency practitioner (liquidator or administrator) acts for the company and controls its assets. Creditors' interests come first, so the decision is theirs, and a data licence may help creditors.
• Still registered (dormant, or wound down but not struck off): the directors can still act for the company.
• Dissolved (struck off the register): the company no longer exists as a legal person, and in the UK its remaining assets generally pass to the Crown (bona vacantia). Take advice before doing anything with its records.

This is general information about UK companies. Other countries' rules differ.

05Four steps before you close

1. List the systems and how many years each covers, and check you can still get into them. Lapsed SaaS subscriptions may already have deleted data, so check before renewing anything.
2. Don't delete what you might license, and keep what the law requires you to keep anyway.
3. Separate your own records from client material. Client files under contract or NDA need the client's agreement.
4. Talk to a programme and your lawyer or insolvency practitioner while the directors can still sign. Once a company is dissolved, nobody can.

Then apply through micro1's company route, saying the company is no longer operating, and agree terms before anything is transferred.

06What to keep out

• HR, payroll and disciplinary files
• Medical and occupational health records
• Client material under NDA
• Legal advice (privilege)

07Personal data doesn't stop mattering

Closing a company doesn't switch off data protection law. If the records hold personal data, whoever now controls them is responsible for what's shared. Properly anonymised data is outside UK GDPR; pseudonymised data (names swapped for codes) is not. micro1 says it de-identifies data before sharing, but the responsibility for what you hand over starts with you.

08For advisers, accountants and insolvency practitioners

If you advise companies that are closing, this is a new conversation to have with them. micro1 publishes a referral reward for introducing a company to the Defunct Data Partnership: $75,000 for deals up to $1M, or 7.5% above. The company must register through your referral link and pass micro1's review, and the reward is paid after the data is transferred and approved. See how micro1's referrals work.

09Check whether you're likely to match

Our free fit check has a "closed" option: choose it, and we'll point you to the right programme. The programme decides.