Cyber incidents made many headlines in 2025 and remain the biggest worry for companies in the Asia Pacific and globally in 2026, according to the Allianz Risk Barometer.
The past year has also been a significant one for the accelerated adoption of AI, as reflected in its ranking as the biggest riser in the annual survey at number two as a complex source of operational, legal, and reputational risk for businesses.
For the first time in five years, Business interruption is no longer in the top two risks in the Asia Pacific, dropping to number three. Yet this peril remains a significant concern, as it can result from other risks in the top 10.
Allianz Commercial CEO Thomas Lillelund stated that, following the volatility and uncertainty of 2025, businesses “continue to face interconnected, highly complex risks in 2026’s fast-changing” environment.
“Given the continuing rise of AI across society and industry, it is unsurprising that it is the big mover in the Allianz Risk Barometer,” Lillelund explained. “As well as bringing huge opportunities, its transformative potential and rapid evolution and adoption are also reshaping the risk landscape, making it a standout concern for firms of all sizes worldwide, alongside other more established threats.”
Christian Sandric, Allianz Commercial President, Commercial, Asia Pacific, noted that the evolving risk landscape, particularly in cyber threats and AI adoption, poses new challenges for businesses in the region.
“With Asian economies playing a pivotal role in global and regional trade, the potential for business interruption also remains a significant concern. This volatile environment stresses the importance of resilience in a business’ supply chain, response measures, and risk management strategies to withstand and recover from disruptions,” stated Sandric.
Cyber incidents are the top risk in the Asia Pacific, and a top three risk in Australia, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, and Thailand. The Asia Pacific region experienced the most cyberattacks in 2024, up 13% year-on-year and accounting for 34% of global attacks.
While businesses in Asia, particularly large companies, have shown increased cyber resilience and an appetite for cyber risk transfer solutions, their overall cyber coverage is generally lower than that of American or European peers, and a significant portion of large organisations still remain self-insured.
Globally, cyber incidents are the top risk for the fifth year in a row, with their highest-ever score (42% of responses) and the highest margin (+10%) ever. It ranks as the main corporate concern in every region (Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe, Africa and the Middle East).
The continued presence of cyber at the top of the Allianz Risk Barometer reflects a deepening reliance on digital technology at a time when the cyber threat landscape and the geopolitical and regulatory environments are evolving rapidly.
Ranking number two in Asia Pacific, AI is a top-three risk and biggest riser in Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia, and Singapore, economies which are in the top 50% in terms of AI readiness. More than 90% of companies in the region plan to scale up Generative AI over the next two years, with a focus on managing costs and boosting revenue.
Globally, AI has surged into the top tier of business concerns, rising to number two (32%) in 2026 from number 10 in 2025, the biggest jump in this year’s ranking. It is a big mover in all regions, ranked number two also in the Americas, Africa and the Middle East, and number three in Europe, and is a growing risk for companies of all sizes too, moving into the top three for large, mid-sized and smaller firms.
As AI adoption accelerates and becomes more deeply embedded in core business operations, respondents expect AI-related risks to intensify, especially around liability concerns. The rapid spread of generative and agentic AI systems, paired with their growing real-world use, has raised awareness of just how exposed organisations have become.
Business interruption is the third most significant risk in the Asia Pacific and a top-three risk in China, India, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and South Korea. The closely linked risk of changes in legislation and regulation, including trade tariffs, ranks fourth (25%), unchanged year-on-year, driven by concerns over growing protectionism.
Commerce is increasingly taking place between geopolitically aligned economies, resulting in new paths in global trade and the emergence of next-generation trade hubs, including Vietnam, Malaysia, and Thailand in the region.
2025 marked a shift towards protectionist trade policies and tariff wars, bringing uncertainty to the global economy. Geopolitical risks are putting supply chains under increasing pressure, but as risks rise, just three per cent of Allianz Risk Barometer respondents view their supply chains as “very resilient”.
In the past year alone, trade restrictions have tripled to affect an estimated $2.7 trillion of merchandise, nearly 20% of global imports, according to Allianz Trade, fuelling companies exploring trends such as friendshoring and regionalisation. These developments lead to a high-risk perception, 29% of respondents rank BI as a top peril, placing it at number three globally, although it drops a position year-on-year.
Natural catastrophes rank number five (22%) in the Asia Pacific, and are a top three risk in Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand. The region experienced several natural catastrophes in 2025, including the Myanmar Earthquake, Typhoons Matmo, Ragasa, and Bualoi, Cyclone Alfred, wildfires in South Korea, and floods in Malaysia and Thailand.
A delayed onset of the tropical cyclone season resulted in flooding and landslides, exerting a high human and economic toll in Asia, where the insurance gap remains high at over 80%.
According to research, there has been a significant increase in the intensity of tropical cyclones in recent decades, and these trends are linked to rising ocean temperatures and climate change, which retains its number six ranking (19%) in the survey.
