Finance bosses back AI despite job loss concerns
The financial services industry is set to drive more investment into AI as the industry’s senior leaders turn bullish on the tech.
More than half of UK institutions expect to up their AI investment in the next 12 months while one in five said they would maintain current levels, data shared with Morning Wire revealed.
Just over 90 per cent financial services firms said they now view the tech as more of an opportunity than threat – a jump from 80 per cent in 2024.
Productivity recorded from AI adoption shot up to 59 per cent, from 32 per cent in 2024.
The data, from Lloyds Banks’ Financial Institutions Sentiment Survey, captures the views of over 100 senior leaders across the UK’s big banks, asset and wealth managers, insurers and financial sponsors.
But despite the gushing views from those at the top of the industry, it comes as figures point to ten per cent of the banking industry risking the chop from AI adoption.
Research from Juniper and Zopa Bank last month suggested some 27,000 banking jobs were at risk as financial services pile billions into AI. Banks are expected to cut up to 178m work hours over the next five years as they double down on the tech.
Starmer’s AI push
The industry’s dive into AI comes amid a broader government push to make the UK a world leader.
However, Lloyds’ data suggests finance bosses want the government to go further in its approach.
Seven in ten respondents said the UK should accelerate its global strategy to keep pace with global shifts.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer unveiled plans to make the UK an “AI maker, not an AI taker” alongside Nvidia boss Jensen Huang at London Tech Week.
He said the government was exploring plans for how the tech could “speed up hugely important areas like hospitals or education”.
Rohit Dhawan, director of AI and advanced analytics at Lloyds, said AI had moved “firmly into the execution phase” across institutions.
Over the last year the banking industry has doubled down on the tech with Lloyds sending bankers to Cambridge University for “AI Bootcamp” and Natwest partnering with OpenAI.
Zopa Bank launched an initiative to train 100,000 bankers in AI disciplines by 2030 as it sought to give employers across the industry an edge against evolving tech.
Lisa Francis, head of institutional coverage at Lloyds, said: “UK financial institutions are not only investing in AI, they’re building it into the fabric of their businesses and seeing measurable gains.
“The productivity uplift alone is a compelling sign that these technologies are already reshaping the industry.”