- 38% of companies worldwide cite cyber attacks, particularly data leaks, as the top business risk for 2025.
- Business interruptions come in second place at 31%.
- Natural disasters are in third place at 29%, while the threat of climate change is increasing the most year-on-year, moving from seventh to fifth place.
- Geopolitical unrest, the impact of government and regulatory changes and fears of trade wars are also considered major threats in 2025.
- In Austria, the top three business risks are business interruptions, natural disasters and cyber attacks. Climate change drops to 8th place.
Cyber attacks such as data leaks or ransomware attacks as well as IT disruptions such as the CrowdStrike incident will be the biggest concern for companies worldwide in 2025, according to the current report Allianz Risk Barometer. In second and third place are again business interruptions and the risk of natural disasters. Meanwhile, the impact of the super election year, namely rising geopolitical tensions and the potential for trade wars, means changes in legislation and regulation are in fourth place. The biggest riser in this year’s Allianz Risk Barometer is climate change, moving from No. 7 to No. 5, a record high in the last 14 years of the survey. For the current edition, more than 3,700 risk experts from over 100 countries were surveyed about their top company risks.
Natural disasters as a growing risk for Austrian companies
Austrian study participants identify business interruptions as the top risk for domestic companies in 2025 (2024: 3rd place). However, the biggest leap forward is made by natural disasters, which were in 6th place last year and are now in 2nd place. The closely related climate change, on the other hand, ranks 8th among the greatest risks and even loses 3 places compared to the previous year. In contrast to the global mood, cyber attacks “only” reach third place in Austria (2024: first place).
“The extreme weather events in September 2024 have brought the risk posed by natural disasters clearly into the awareness of companies and made it visible as a real threat to companies and their existence. On the one hand, it is important for companies to take appropriate precautions and, on the other hand, to work on a viable insurance solution that enables good natural disaster coverage,” says Daniel Matić, CEO of Allianz in Austria.
Vanessa Maxwell, Chief Underwriting Officer von Allianz Commercialcommented on the global results: “2024 was an exceptional year for risk management. The results of our annual Allianz Risk Barometer reflect the uncertainty facing many companies around the world. The interconnectedness of the top risks is particularly striking this year, as climate change, new technologies, regulation and geopolitical risks are increasingly intertwined. This leads to complex relationships of cause and effect. Companies must put resilience at the top of their agenda and consistently strive to improve their risk management and resilience.”
Cyber risks continue to increase with rapid technological development
Cyber incidents (38%) are considered the world’s top risk for the fourth year in a row – and by a larger margin than ever before (7 percentage points). They are the greatest threat in 20 countries, including Argentina, France, Germany, India, South Africa and Great Britain. More than 60% of respondents say data breaches are the biggest risk to organizations, followed by attacks on critical infrastructure and physical assets at 57%.
“Many companies cite cyber as the biggest risk, which is even exacerbated by the rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI). Given the increasing reliance on technology, it is likely to remain a key risk for businesses in the future. “The CrowdStrike incident in the summer of 2024 showed us how dependent we all are on secure IT systems,” says Rishi Baviskar, Global Head of Cyber Risk Consulting bei Allianz Commercial.
Business interruptions are closely linked to other risks
Business interruptions (BU) have been ranked either #1 or #2 in every Allianz Risk Barometer for the past decade and will retain their #2 position at 31% in 2025. Business interruptions are typically a result of events such as natural disasters, cyber attacks or failures, and bankruptcies or political risks such as conflict or civil unrest, all of which may affect a company’s ability to operate normally. Several examples from 2024 show why companies still see business interruptions as a major threat to their business model: Houthi attacks in the Red Sea led to supply chain disruptions due to the rerouting of container ships, while the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore also caused direct disruption had an impact on global and local supply chains. According to one Analyse by Circular Republic in collaboration with Allianz and other companies, supply chain disruptions with global impacts occur approximately every 1.4 years, and the trend is increasing. These disruptions cause significant economic damage, up to 5% to 10% of product costs, and additional downtime.
“The pursuit of technological advancement and efficiency impacts the resilience of supply chains. Automation and digitalization have significantly accelerated processes. When implemented effectively, these technologies increase resilience by providing better data analysis, prediction, and more agile response capabilities. “This is why building and investing in resilience becomes more important for every company,” says Michael Bruch, Global Head of Risk Advisory Services bei Allianz Commercial.
Climate change is increasing risk perception
2024 is expected to be the hottest year on record. It was also a year of terrible natural disasters, with extreme hurricanes and storms in North America, devastating floods in Europe and Asia, and drought in Africa and South America. After sliding down the rankings during the pandemic years as businesses grappled with more immediate challenges, climate change moves up two positions into the top five global risks in 2025, reaching its highest position ever at No. 5 . For the fifth time in a row, insured losses exceeded $100 billion in 2024.
Globally, natural disasters are the greatest risk in Austria, Croatia, Greece, Hong Kong, Japan, Romania, Slovenia, Spain and Turkey. Floods in Central and Eastern Europe and Spain had a dramatic impact on people and businesses. In Austria, insured losses recently amounted to around one billion euros annually. Due to the flood disaster in September, the insurance industry is expecting 1.6 to 2 billion euros for 2024.
Geopolitics and protectionism remain on the radar
Despite ongoing geopolitical and economic uncertainty in the Middle East, Ukraine and Southeast Asia, political risks and violence fall one place year-over-year to 9th (14%).
Fears of trade wars and protectionism are increasing. Analysis by Allianz and others shows that export restrictions on critical raw materials have increased fivefold in the last decade. Tariffs and protectionism may be at the top of the new US administration’s list, but on the other hand there is also the risk of a “regulatory Wild West”, particularly when it comes to AI and cryptocurrencies. In Europe, sustainability reporting requirements will be high on the agenda in 2025.
“The impact of new tariffs will be similar to (over)regulation: increasing costs for all affected companies,” explains Ludovic Subran, chief economist at Allianz. “Not all regulation is inherently ‘bad.’ In most cases, it is the implementation that makes corporate life difficult. The focus should be not only on the number of rules, but also on efficient administration. Thorough digitization of the authorities is urgently needed. However, we will probably still wait in vain for a corresponding digital strategy in 2025. Instead, there is a threat of trade wars. The prospects are not rosy,” Subran continued.
The entire ranking can be found here.
For further information please contact:
Hugo Kidston
+44 203 451 3891
hugo.kidston@allianz.com
Philip Keirath
+49 160 982 343 85
philipp.keirath@allianz.com