More than one-third (37%) of financial services CFOs agreed that their institutions’ strategies would be constrained due to expectations of an economic downturn in the U.S., according to a new survey by Deloitte released this week. When asked about their priorities for the coming year, financial services CFOs said capital allocation, cost management and financial performance were the top three.
With regard to capital, three-fourths of respondents said they would allocate or reallocate capital toward new business investments, while 38% said they would take on new debt. Financial services CFOs also anticipated significant increases in talent and labor costs—70% agreed or strongly agreed that these costs would rise in 2023.
The survey also showed that financial services companies continue to embrace automation and digital technologies for a wide range of purposes. Eighty-two percent agreed that they would work in the coming year to embed more automation and digital technologies into their operations, while 74% said they would seek to use such technologies to allow employees to spend more time on higher-value activities.
