While optimism has dipped since the beginning of the year as the snap election and shock result hit home, asset and wealth managers remain among the most optimistic in the industry the survey shows.
Business and profits increased between April and June, and employment numbers and investment in IT has been strong.
However, the asset and wealth management industry is behind the times on introducing artificial intelligence (AI) with most saying they won’t invest in more emerging technologies for another two or three years.
Mark Pugh, head of UK asset and wealth management at PwC, said: “Over the past year our survey has shown that the UK’s asset managers tend to underestimate how well they will perform. This shows there is significant underlying caution in the sector, driven by ongoing geopolitical and macroeconomic factors but companies continue to perform well regardless.
“Investment in technology is a priority for asset managers, with large amounts of money invested in updating and replacing systems. They appear to be behind the banks and insurers in embracing emerging technologies like artificial intelligence but are focused on fixing the basics in preparation for further transformation.
“Whilst this a sensible approach, some players with direct access to their customers are undoubtedly in more of a hurry to implement customer friendly technologies such as robo advice and chatbots, underpinned by AI and data analytics.”
