Skip to main content
Marsh logo

Trade Credit report 2026

Is high risk becoming normalised in a volatile environment?

Download report

Explore why businesses remain confident despite rising financial exposure, growing payment pressure and increasing digital and supply chain risks.

Businesses are confident, but exposed

Insights from 1,000 UK CEOs and finance directors on the real risks shaping financial resilience – and what to do next.

Businesses are operating in a sustained period of elevated financial risk. Yet confidence remains remarkably high. Understanding that gap is critical for business leaders.

This report is designed for CEOs, finance directors, and business leaders navigating an increasingly volatile trading environment. Based on research from 1,000 UK CEOs and finance directors, it highlights where perceptions of resilience may not match the reality of growing exposure – and what that disconnect could mean for future cash flow, continuity, and performance.

If your organisation is seeing pressure from late payments, customer or supplier concentration, or fast-moving digital and AI disruption, this report provides a practical lens on the warning signs that are easy to overlook until they become a financial loss. At the same time, it shows where confidence may be earned – and which resilience strategies are helping businesses operate through volatility.

What the research reveals

Our findings point to a widening gap between confidence and financial exposure. While organisations continue to feel resilient, many are reporting:

  • Increasing late payments and related financial losses
  • Rising customer and supplier concentration risk
  • Digital disruption and AI-related risk that can amplify operational and credit vulnerabilities
  • Expanding credit exposure as businesses extend more generous terms to support growth
  • Increased bad debt write-offs and rising collections costs

Understanding these signals helps leaders strengthen resilience, prioritise mitigation actions, and make more informed risk management decisions – before issues escalate into material losses.

Key insights

Placeholder Image

98% believe their organisation is resilient to financial exposure risk

Placeholder Image

76% have experienced financial losses due to late payments

Placeholder Image

99% are becoming increasingly reliant on a small number of key suppliers

See what's coming next

Download the Marsh Trade Credit report 2026

Use this report to:

  • Pressure-test confidence against real exposure indicators across your trading environment.
  • Identify the most common sources of financial strain from payments to concentration risk.
  • Understand how digital and AI-related risks are changing the financial risk landscape.
  • Strengthen financial resilience with clearer early-warning signals and better-informed decisions.
  • Start more strategic internal conversations across finance, risk, and commercial teams about where protections are (and aren’t) in place.
  • Benchmark your business against five exposure indicators highlighted in the research – and prioritise where action is most urgent.
  • Evaluate how tools such as trade credit insurance, receivables financing, and digital monitoring can improve visibility and protection.

What’s inside the report?

  • Perception vs reality gap: Why it’s widening and what it means for performance.
  • Five exposure indicators: The warning signs shaping today’s financial risk landscape.
  • Sector spotlights: How exposure and resilience differ across food and beverage, energy and commodities, construction, manufacturing, technology and telecommunications, and professional services.
  • Practical actions: How to strengthen resilience, reduce volatility and make more informed risk decisions.

Download the report to see where UK business leaders are most exposed today – and what steps can help protect revenue, cash flow, and continuity.

Get the report now

Report FAQs

A research-based report drawing on insights from 1,000 UK CEOs and finance directors to assess current financial exposure risks and highlight the disconnect between perceived and actual resilience.

CEOs, CFOs/finance directors, COOs, heads of credit, and business leaders responsible for financial performance, risk management, and supply chain continuity.

It focuses on real organisational exposure signals (late payments, financial risk, and digital/AI disruption) and how confidence levels may mask underlying vulnerabilities.

It provides a clearer view of warning signs and decision points that can inform credit risk practices, supplier/customer risk management, and resilience planning.

Yes. Strong performance can coexist with rising exposure. The report helps leaders spot risks early – before they impact cash flow, operations, or growth plans.

Our people

Ian Leslie

Ian Leslie

Managing Director, Trade Credit UK, Credit Specialties, Marsh Specialty

  • United Kingdom

Placeholder Image

Robert Butler

Head of Client & Partner Engagement, Trade Credit UK, Credit Specialties, Marsh Specialty

  • United Kingdom

Related insights

Teamwork businessmen co-working on laptop computer with synconize business graphic, financial graph data monitoring on screen in modern office, business team co working concept

Podcast

Trade Credit Talks: Late Payments, Insolvencies & Protecting Your Cash Flow

12/06/2026
Financial graphs background

Article

Trade Credit Talks: Podcast Series

08/06/2026
Curved feather patterns on teal surface

Article

A trade credit insurance buying opportunity

26/05/2026
Political risk report 2026

Report,Featured insight

Political risk report 2026

25/02/2026
View more