There’s a new bull market in corporate defaults, subjecting more CFOs to a trial by fire but also giving them a chance to shine.

Through last week, 74 U.S. public and private companies had defaulted this year, according to S&P Global Ratings, surpassing the number in each of the past five years, and accounting for two-thirds of the global total. In 2009, during the financial crisis, there were 201 corporate defaults globally by this point in the year.

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