When do firms leave cartels? Determinants and the impact on cartel survival

•We investigate the determinants of the duration of a firm’s participation in a cartel.•We use a dataset of 615 firms which participated in 114 illegal cartels.•Firms leave earlier if prior exits occurred and in periods of high demand growth.•Firms leave later if prior entries occurred and in periods of high interest rates.•Firm exits also increase the probability of a cartel breakdown substantially.