UK CFOs upbeat on tech investment and potential for AI to boost productivity for year ahead
- More than half of finance chiefs (59%) have become more optimistic over the past 12 months on the potential for AI to boost the performance of their organisation, up from 39% in Q3 of 2024;
- Almost all of them (96%) expect to see a rise in investment in digital technology and assets by UK companies in the next five years;
- Corporate risk appetite (15%) has edged up from the lows seen in September (12%) but remain well below average levels (25%);
- CFOs who rated the level of external uncertainty as high or very high fell this quarter to 38%, compared to the last quarter at 41%.
Deloitte’s latest survey of UK Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) shows that 59% of the UK’s largest businesses have become more optimistic over the past 12 months on the potential for AI to boost the performance of their own organisation – up from 39% when last measured in the third quarter of 2024.
CFOs overwhelmingly (96%) expect to see a rise in investment in digital technology and assets by UK companies over the next five years. The survey – which took place between 2nd and 14th December – also found the vast majority (77%) expect an increase in productivity growth and business performance over the same period.
Richard Houston, senior partner and chief executive of Deloitte UK, said: “CFOs are significantly more positive about improving performance through deploying AI and remain upbeat about technology investment over the medium term. We know technology was a big driver of US GDP in 2025 and we see real potential in the year ahead for AI to boost UK business performance and fuel growth. However, to realise the full value from AI, we must combine human skills with technology and upskill people, so nobody is left behind.”
Risk appetite increases with reduction in pessimism
Risk appetite edged up at the end of 2025, with 15% of CFOs saying that it was a good time to take greater risk onto their balance sheet. This is up 12% from the last quarter, though well below the long-run average of 25%.
Business optimism in Q4 also picked up from the Q3 low, more positive than Q4 2024 and in line with levels that were seen in March 2025. Nonetheless, the reading on business confidence remains negative at net -13%1, below its long-run average.
More expansionary strategies remained a lesser priority although the proportion of CFOs reporting that capital expenditure is a strong priority, rose to a two-and-a-half-year high of 17% and is now running marginally above the long-term average of 15%.
Uncertainty declines but geopolitical concerns remain
The number of CFOs who rated the level of external uncertainty as high or very high fell this quarter to 38%, compared to the last quarter at 41%. This is the lowest level since Q3 of 2024 (31%).
Geopolitics remains the top external risk2 for finance chiefs of large UK businesses heading into 2026 – as it has in the previous three years, with a rating of 65 compared to 62 in the previous quarter.
The second highest rated risk relates to UK competitiveness and productivity with a rating of 62, which remains at the highest level since the question was first asked in late 2014. The risk of higher energy prices or disruption to energy supplies rounds out CFOs’ top three risks for 2026, however the rating has marginally fallen this quarter to 47, from 48 in September.
Ian Stewart, chief economist at Deloitte UK, said: “Business sentiment is subdued but more positive than a year ago. While CFOs remain cautious about geopolitics and productivity, business confidence and risk appetite have ticked up from their autumn lows and perceptions of external uncertainty have edged lower.”
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Note to editors
1 A number of the Deloitte CFO survey findings are presented in terms of net balances – standard practice with surveys conducted by many central banks. In the case of optimism, CFOs were asked whether they were more or less optimistic about the financial prospects of their business compared to three months ago. The net balance (net -13%) was then computed by subtracting the percentage of CFOs who reported feeling less optimistic from those who reported feeling more optimistic. Net balances can be negative or positive. In the case of optimism, a negative reading implies a greater proportion of CFOs reported feeling less optimistic than reported feeling more optimistic. Throughout this press release and the survey report, net percentages indicate where net balances are used to present findings.
2 The 12 risk areas tracked in the survey are:
– Rising geopolitical risks worldwide including greater protectionism
– Poor productivity/weak competitiveness in the UK economy
– Higher energy prices or disruption to energy supplies
– Persistent labour shortages
– The risk of higher inflation and/or a bubble in housing and other real and financial assets
– The prospect of further rate rises and a general tightening of monetary conditions in the UK and US
– Long-term effects of climate change
– Economic weakness and/or volatility in US growth
– Medium-term supply chain disruption
– Deflation and economic weakness in the euro area, and the possibility of a renewed euro crisis
– Effects of Brexit/deterioration in UK-EU relations
– Weakness and/or volatility in emerging markets
About the survey
Conducted between 2nd and 14th December 2025, the Q4 2025 Survey is the 74th quarterly survey of Chief Financial Officers and Group Finance Directors of major companies in the UK.
Overall, 55 CFOs participated, including the CFOs of nine FTSE 100 companies and 18 FTSE 250 companies. The rest were CFOs of other UK listed companies, large private companies and UK subsidiaries of major companies listed overseas. The combined market value of the 31 UK-listed companies surveyed is £389 billion, or approximately 14% of the quoted UK equity market.
The Deloitte CFO Survey is the only survey of major corporate users of capital that gauges attitudes to valuations, risk and financing.
For copies of previous CFO surveys, please see here.
