UK Financial System Faces Rising Threats from Geopolitics, Cyberattacks, and AI

The Bank of England's latest systemic risk survey reveals that market participants remain broadly confident in the stability of the UK financial system over the next three years, but with a growing concern about the probability of high-impact events.

According to the 2026 H2 Systemic Risk Survey, 95% of respondents (57 firms) are either very confident or fairly confident in the stability of the UK financial system. However, perceptions of near-term risks have increased, with 28% viewing high-impact event likelihood as high and 47% rating it as medium.

The survey highlights geopolitical risk, cyberattack, and artificial intelligence as leading, increasingly difficult, and likely threats to the UK financial system. The number of respondents citing artificial intelligence as a risk has substantially increased, reaching its highest level recorded in the survey across three categories.