Structural shifts are becoming clearer from discrete risks to systemic effects, as geopolitics emerges as one key factor in the risk landscape for accountants.
According to a report by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), as finance professionals gear up for the new quarter, 33% of the respondents from Asia-Pacific ranked geopolitical instability as their top risk priority.
But against this backdrop, ACCA also found that respondents emphasise how converging forces are shaping the macro landscape, highlighting how AI and cyber risks amplify others, while eroding trust – in institutions, information and leadership – and are becoming a defining feature of operating in today’s world
The report revealed that cybersecurity risks remain elevated at 17%, while economic pressures – including inflation and interest rate volatility – stand high at 16%.
ACCA says this shift does not suggest that economic risks are diminishing – far from it. Rather, it reflects a growing recognition that today’s macroeconomic conditions are shaped, and often destabilised, by a convergence of forces beyond traditional economic cycles.
In the open-ended question on underestimated risks, respondents describe how geopolitical conflicts and policy fragmentation feed directly into economic outcomes.
