While 2019 was a year of ups and downs, investor appetite remained strong. As we start a new decade Moon Executive Search asks Paul Oldham, BGF, what the main investment trends for 2020 are likely to be.

Paul’s predictions for 2020 are:

• Infrastructure and construction – the Government has committed to significant spending increases on infrastructure, schools and housebuilding. This needs to happen and will require some creative thinking and focus from ministers to deliver it. The decision on whether to proceed with HS2 will have a massive impact on construction spending, whichever way it goes.

• Vegan and healthy eating – there is real momentum behind this now and it has the potential to materially affect the pattern of consumer spending on food. This will create investment opportunities for food manufacturers and retailers, including the development of new brands.

• Carbon reduction and sustainability – another sector that I expect to grow and attract increasing levels of investment and innovation. This will include the reduction in use of plastics, more recycling, development of electric vehicles and enhanced battery technology.

• Overseas investment into the UK – the value of the £ remains low by historical standards, making UK businesses and assets relatively cheap for overseas buyers. I would expect to see high levels of investment into UK assets by overseas corporates and investors, including increased investment from China and the Far East.

Increased corporate investment for growth – Brexit and political uncertainty acted to depress investment levels in 2019. Although the Brexit uncertainty remains, I would expect companies to increase their investment levels in 2020 to support growth. BGF is the largest provider of equity growth capital funding to UK SMEs and we have geared up to increase our investment activity across all regions of the UK. Around 75% of BGF’s investment is made outside the South East of England.

“Overall I am cautiously optimistic for 2020, but there are two big threats that could impact the UK economy – continued Brexit uncertainty (including the possibility of a “no-deal” exit), and a global world recession, with the most likely cause being a US/China trade war and greater protectionism. But we are encouraging our investee companies to be bold and to exploit the many growth opportunities that exist for ambitious privately-owned businesses.” Paul Oldham, BGF

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