Ballot boxes, bots, and bitcoin - what’s driving investor confidence
In a year marked by political flux and tariff-driven market tremors, UK investors aren’t flinching. They’re recalibrating.
The 2025 Investor Index, now in its sixth year and based on a survey of over 1,100 UK adults with at least £10,000 invested, reveals an increasingly self-directed and resilient investor base, particularly among those under 35.
Confidence remains firm despite geopolitical and macroeconomic unease, with younger investors leaning into volatility as a catalyst rather than a deterrent.
A year ago, nearly two-thirds of UK investors (65%) said they expected a change in political leadership to benefit their portfolios.
Fast forward twelve months, and just 35% believe those expectations have materialized. Nearly half—46%—report that the political transition has actually had a negative impact.
Yet the generational divide is stark. Among investors aged 18–34, 72% say the new political chapter has improved their investment outcomes.
For them, political change appears less about policy alignment and more about perceived momentum—a signal to invest rather than retreat.
If 2023 was the year financial professionals acknowledged artificial intelligence, 2025 is when the retail investor began to act on it. ChatGPT usage among UK investors jumped 11 points in the past year to 33%. Among the under-35 cohort, usage soared to 70%. Perhaps more telling: 77% of investors across all age groups now believe ChatGPT is capable of offering reliable financial advice.
This raises new questions for CFOs and wealth managers: not just how to respond to AI’s presence in client behavior, but how to factor it into the evolving investor psyche. A generation raised on chatbots and crypto doesn’t just expect digital fluency—they demand it.
Cryptocurrency ownership rose to 26%, a 5-point increase from the prior year. That might have once been the headline, but in 2025, it’s ESG that’s quietly defining portfolio priorities—especially among younger investors. While 44% of all investors say it’s important their investments reflect environmental and social values (up from 39%), that figure climbs to 72% among the 18–34 group, up 20 percentage points year-on-year.
This isn’t ESG-as-marketing. It’s a shift in investment philosophy—one that views ethical alignment not as a tradeoff, but as a prerequisite for long-term growth.
Despite a turbulent backdrop—including a high-stakes general election and tariff escalation—investor confidence has barely wavered. The 2025 Index stands at 103, just two points below last year’s peak and well above the COVID-era trough of 62. Notably, the survey landed during the peak of the tariffs crisis, suggesting that UK investors are increasingly immune to headline volatility.
Nearly half (47%) of younger investors say they view current economic challenges as investment opportunities. This optimism isn’t blind; it’s tactical. It signals a shift from reactive to proactive investing—a mindset CFOs should note as they plan capital market strategies and shareholder communications.
What emerges from the data is a portrait of a market that’s evolving faster than many institutions. Today’s UK investor is AI-literate, politically skeptical, ESG-conscious, and surprisingly confident in the face of macro disruption. Long-term investing still reigns—67% say it matters more than ever—but the path to portfolio growth now comes with new assumptions.
For corporate finance leaders and institutional investors alike, the takeaway is clear: alignment with this new investor mindset isn’t optional. It’s a prerequisite for trust—and relevance—in the post-2025 investment landscape.