The portion of self-employed seniors who have gone bankrupt is trending higher due to excessive competition, data showed Friday, raising alarm as a growing number of babyboomers among them are opting to start their own businesses after retirement.

Some 75.3 percent of self-employed businesses that went belly up last year were run by those aged over 50, compared with 70.6 percent in 2011, according to the data by the Korea Financial Telecommunications & Clearings Institute.

Of the total, those aged between 50-59 accounted for 42.7 percent, followed by those aged over 60 with 32.6 percent. The age segments represent the generation of Korean babyboomers who were born in 1955-1963.

The data comes as babyboomers, who worked their way through the heyday of South Korea’s economic growth, are opening their own businesses out of financial need.

Separate data by Statistics Korea showed that the portion of those aged over 50 accounted for 57.6 percent of all self-employed in 2014. In 2007, the figure stood at 47.5 percent. (Yonhap)