UK businesses are outpacing their global peers in risk management and governance in the face of increasing risks.

Broker Aon has released the findings of its 2025 Global Risk Management Survey which reported nearly eight in ten UK respondents (78.6 percent) revealed their boards are directly involved, compared with 61.4 percent globally, highlighting how senior leadership in the UK is taking greater responsibility for the risks their businesses face.

In addition, three-quarters of UK firms (75.4 percent) have dedicated risk or insurance departments, compared with just over two-thirds of companies globally (68.4 percent).

The survey gathered insights from nearly 3,000 executives across 63 countries and 16 industries, to provide a detailed view of the world’s shifting risk landscape.

The top current risks for UK businesses are cyber-attacks/data breaches, business interruption, and economic slowdown, reflecting the growing impact of digital, operational, and macroeconomic volatility. Looking ahead, UK firms stand out by ranking artificial intelligence (AI) and increasing competition in their top five emerging risks for the next three years. This is a clear signal that executives are showing an increasing appreciation of how their businesses are likely to be affected by technology and innovation-driven challenges, as well as by their more traditional risk exposures.

“Cyber-attacks and data breaches remain the top concern for UK organisations, reflecting the persistent threat posed by Management of Total Cost of Risk (TCOR) Captives increasingly sophisticated criminal tactics and the rapid evolution of technology,” The report added. “In the past year, UK corporates have faced increasingly sophisticated cyber threats, including AI-driven deepfake scams that impersonated CEOs to authorise fraudulent transactions.

“High Appendix profile ransomware attacks demonstrate how digital intrusions can Methodology rapidly escalate into operational crises, reinforcing the need for integrated cyber and business continuity strategies.”

Commenting on the report Martin Burke, MS Amlin’s chief underwriting officer, said: “Our research has shown that a company hit by a cyber-attack could be at risk of losing a third of its prospective customers – with 36% of consumers saying they would think negatively of a firm that was forced to stop normal service or lost customer data.

“Cybercrime today is as much a real-world risk as extreme weather and political unrest, and is just as fluid and unpredictable. Businesses and brands need to ensure they’re treating it as such to avoid the lasting ramifications we’re seeing play out around high profile cyber attacks in the last few months.

“This is where the insurance market plays a crucial role. While the financial cost of a cyber-attack can be staggering, the implications are even more complex, reaching far beyond the company that has been targeted into the community and – ultimately – the wider economy.”

Unsurprisingly geopolitical risks are also weighing heavy on businesses and their operational risks.

“For the first time since the Global Risk Management Survey began in 2007, geopolitical volatility has entered the UK’s top risks, 15 reflecting the impact of regional conflicts, economic pressures and shifting regulatory landscapes,” Aon explained. “This volatility is reshaping supply 18 chains, trade flows and investment strategies, and is closely linked to the growing cyber threat. As global tensions rise, UK organisations should reassess their risk exposures and develop 21 27 agile strategies to respond to emerging uncertainties.”

However, despite the rising risks UK organisations are also demonstrating a more mature approach to quantifying and managing risk. Nearly seven in ten (68.8 percent) measure their total cost of insurable risk, compared with 54 percent globally, while three-quarters (75 percent) currently operate or plan to establish a captive insurance vehicle, suggesting a more advanced approach to risk financing and governance.

UK businesses are also more likely to rely on brokers to identify major risks, with 78.3 percent doing so versus 55.7 percent globally, emphasising the value placed on specialist advice to complement in-house expertise.

Rob Kemp, head of Commercial Risk for Aon UK, said: “The findings show that UK boards are adopting a more structured and data-driven approach to risk oversight. Many are using analytics and specialist insight to better understand emerging risks – particularly around technologies such as AI – as well as to balance innovation with regulatory and ethical considerations.

“The risks businesses face today demand more than incremental change. They call for leaders to view resilience as a source of competitive advantage – harnessing data and analytics to anticipate disruption and enabling them to act decisively in protecting and growing their organisations.”