Cyber incidents such as data breaches or ransomware attacks, and IT disruptions, like the CrowdStrike incident, are the biggest worry for companies globally in 2025, according to the Allianz Risk Barometer.
Once again, business interruption is also a main concern for companies of all sizes, ranking No. 2. After another heavy year of natural catastrophes activity in 2024, this peril remains No. 3, while the impact of a super election year, rising geopolitical tensions and the potential for trade wars mean changes in legislation and regulation is a top five risk at No. 4. The biggest riser in this year's Allianz Risk Barometer is climate change, from No. 7 to No. 5, achieving its highest-ever position in 14 years of the survey.
The Allianz Risk Barometer is an annual business risk ranking compiled by Allianz Commercial, together with other Allianz entities. It incorporates the views of 3,778 risk management experts in 106 countries and territories, including CEOs, risk managers, brokers and insurance experts.
Large corporates and mid-size, and smaller businesses all perceive cyber incidents as their No. 1 business risk. However, there are significant differences in the rest of the ranking. Smaller companies are more concerned about more localized and immediate risks, such as regulatory compliance, macroeconomic developments and skill shortages, but there are also signs that some of the risks that have preoccupied larger companies are starting to affect smaller firms, too, with climate change and political risks and violence climbing the ranking.
In the U.S., cyber incidents once again top the list of business risks, followed by natural catastrophes at No. 2, up from the third spot in 2024. Rounding out the top three is business interruption. Changes in legislation and regulation is the biggest riser in the region, advancing to the fourth spot from No. 8 in 2024.
Cyber risks continue to increase with rapid development of technology.
Cyber incidents (38% of overall responses) rank as the most important risk globally for the fourth year in a row – and by a higher margin than ever (seven percentage points). It is the top peril in 20 countries, including Argentina, France, Germany, India, South Africa, the U.K. and the U.S. More than 60% of respondents identified data breaches as the cyber exposure companies fear most, followed by attacks on critical infrastructure and physical assets, with 57%.
According to Rishi Baviskar, global head of cyber risk consulting at Allianz Commercial, "For many companies, cyber risk, exacerbated by rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI), is the big risk overriding everything else. It is likely to remain a top risk for organizations going forward, given the growing reliance on technology – the CrowdStrike incident in summer 2024 once again underlined how dependent we all are on secure and dependent IT systems."
See also: The Evolving Landscape of Cybersecurity
Business interruption strongly linked with other risks.
Business interruption (BI) has ranked either No. 1 or No. 2 in every Allianz Risk Barometer for the past decade and retains its position at No. 2 in 2025, with 31% of responses. BI is typically a consequence of events like a natural disaster or a cyberattack, which can affect the ability of a business to operate normally.
Several examples from 2024 highlight why companies still see BI as a major threat to their business model. Houthi attacks in the Red Sea led to supply chain disruptions due to rerouting of container ships, while incidents such as the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore also directly affected supply chains. Supply chain disruptions with global effects occur approximately every 1.4 years, and the trend is intensifying, according to analysis from Circular Republic. Those disruptions cause major economic damages, ranging up to 5% to 10% of product costs and additional downtime impacts.
Climate change reaches new high.
2024 is expected to have been the hottest year on record. It has also been a year of terrible natural catastrophes with extreme hurricanes and storms in North America, devastating floods in Europe and Asia and drought in Africa and South America.
After dropping down the ranking during the pandemic years, as companies had to deal with more immediate challenges, climate change moves up two positions into the top five global risks, at No. 5 in 2025, its highest-ever position, while the closely linked peril of natural catastrophes remains at No. 3, with 29%, although more respondents also picked this as a top risk year-over-year. For the fifth time in a row in 2024, insured losses surpassed $100 billion.
See also: Why Is the Cyber Insurance Market So Soft?
Geopolitics and protectionism remain on the radar.
Despite continuing geopolitical and economic uncertainty in the Middle East, Ukraine and Southeast Asia, political risks and violence drop one place to No. 9 year-over-year, albeit with the same share of respondents as 2024 (14%). But it ranks as a more concerning risk for large companies, up to No. 7, while it is also a new entry into the top 10 risks for smaller companies, at No. 10.
The fear of trade wars and protectionism is increasing, and analysis shows that within the last decade export restrictions on critical raw materials increased by a factor of five. Tariffs and protectionism may be top of the list of the new U.S. government, but on the other hand there is also the risk of a "regulatory Wild West," particularly around AI and cryptocurrencies. Meanwhile, sustainability reporting requirements will be high on the agenda in Europe in 2025.
Read the full 2025 Allianz Risk Barometer here.
