HSBC UK is launching a £5bn AI and productivity financing initiative to support UK businesses with future-ready investments.
New research from the Center for Economics and Business Research has found that UK mid-sized businesses could generate an additional £105bn in revenue by 2030 if they continue on their current AI adoption trends.
According to the study’s economic forecasting models, AI is rapidly becoming the hallmark of business success, making the difference between companies moving forward and those at risk of falling back.
The UK’s approximately 35,000 medium-sized businesses generate 23% more value per employee than the economic average.
Just two years ago, 35% of midsize businesses were using AI. By the end of 2025, this percentage has jumped to 55% of companies as midsize companies adopt advances in language models, automation, and analytics at scale.
The survey found a further divide between companies that use AI for simple tasks such as composing emails and summarizing documents, and those that have fully integrated AI into their workflows.
When it comes to AI adoption in midsized businesses, a quarter are described as “productive adopters,” meaning they are embedding AI across their entire business and technology stack, from supply chain to customer.
Against the backdrop of the increasing use of AI and the importance of mid-market businesses to the UK economy, HSBC UK has launched a £5bn initiative to drive long-term business growth.
The analysis showed that a ‘productive implementation’ would generate £4.5m in revenue and £1.3m in additional economic value compared to a similar size company that did not implement AI.
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“Medium-sized businesses play a central role in the UK’s growth,” said James Cundey, Managing Director and Head of Corporate Leverage Finance at HSBC UK. “Our findings suggest that the adoption of AI has the potential to strengthen one of the economy’s most important growth engines.
“This opportunity is significant, but we need confidence to invest. We are focused on supporting businesses that invest in the technology, skills and innovation that will shape the UK’s next stage of growth.
“Through HSBC UK’s new initiative, businesses will be able to access capital on commercial terms to build the skills, systems and technology they need to increase productivity.”
