UK CFOs Turn Optimistic on AI’s Payoff

Boardrooms are feeling bolder this week, and the numbers back it up. Deloitte’s latest CFO Survey, which anchors this issue’s editorial, found UK finance chiefs at their most optimistic on AI in years, with cost-cutting easing off and appetite for acquisitions climbing to a five-year high. That confidence showed up fast in the deal flow that landed on our desk.

The clearest evidence: logistics landlord Segro agreeing to a $19bn takeover by US giant Prologis, after months of investor pressure finally pushed the board to the table. Energy also had a big week, with TotalEnergies picking up Shell’s entire European onshore renewables arm, and Drax wrapping up its £548m buyout of Bluefield Solar.

Here’s what to know:

• Segro has agreed to a $19bn takeover by Prologis, the logistics real estate giant’s largest UK deal in years.
• TotalEnergies has acquired Shell’s 4GW European onshore renewables business, deepening its bet on the energy transition.
• Drax has completed its £548m acquisition of Bluefield Solar, adding solar and wind assets to its generation mix.

Thanks for reading, and connect with me on LinkedIn if you want to discuss how I can help with your next M&A deal.

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Week Summary | From July 31 to August 06, 2026

It was a busy week for UK dealmaking, with 15 transactions crossing our desk across energy, industrials, aerospace and professional services. Energy and renewables led the pack by volume, while real estate delivered the week’s single biggest number. 

Energy and renewables were the clear standouts, accounting for four of the week’s deals. TotalEnergies‘ acquisition of Shell’s 4GW European onshore renewables business set the tone, followed by Drax‘s £548m completion of its Bluefield Solar buyout, Eku Energy‘s purchase of the 300MW Didcot battery storage project. Together they point to battery storage and renewables generation as the UK sector investors keep returning to.

By value, though, nothing came close to Segro’s $19bn agreed takeover by Prologis, struck after sustained investor pressure and standing as the week’s clear headline number.

Aerospace and engineering saw a smaller but steady flow of bolt-on deals, with ETL Systems adding Croatian satellite specialist Amphinicy and Kigass Aero Components joining the Hanover-backed Llanelec group, alongside a handful of smaller UK buyouts in professional services and events.

Beyond completed deals, the rumour mill stayed active too: easyJet’s takeover battle between Castlelake and Apollo edged toward a climax, and reports of early-stage AstraZeneca–Bristol Myers Squibb merger talks rattled AstraZeneca‘s share price. On the funding side, Index Ventures closed a fresh multi-billion-pound raise as it doubles down on AI, keeping venture activity firmly in the mix alongside this week’s M&A.

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UK CFOs turn optimistic on AI’s payoff

Britain’s finance chiefs are shedding some of the caution they’ve carried since 2022. Deloitte’s Q2 2026 CFO Survey finds that 73% of CFOs are now more optimistic that AI can meaningfully improve their business’s performance, up from 59% at the end of 2025 and more than double the 39% recorded in 2024.

That optimism is translating into hard spending plans. 96% of CFOs expect UK businesses to raise investment in digital technology and AI over the next five years, with 91% expecting a rise within the next 12 months alone. 78% also expect the payoff to show up in stronger productivity and business performance over the same five-year horizon.

It’s part of a broader, if modest, pivot away from the defensive playbook CFOs have leaned on since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 

Although cost-cutting remains the top priority, the proportion of respondents naming it fell from 68% to 53% quarter-on-quarter. In its place, appetite for expansion is growing: the proportion of those planning new products or markets increased by 12 points to 37%, while the proportion of CFOs targeting growth through acquisition rose to 22%, which is the highest figure in five years.

Easier credit is helping the shift along. A net 53% of CFOs now say credit is easily available, a four-and-a-half-year high, which Deloitte links directly to rising M&A appetite, partly as a shortcut to acquiring AI capability rather than building it in-house.

Geopolitics remains the biggest external worry, as it has for 16 of the past 18 quarters, though the average risk score eased from 79 to 68 as fears around the US-Iran conflict briefly receded, before hostilities resumed. Poor UK productivity and competitiveness now rank as the second-biggest risk on record.

The takeaway: UK boardrooms are still bracing for a bumpy external backdrop, but they’re increasingly betting AI-driven productivity gains are the tool to offset it.

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