Our Future of Finance theme had the highest returns of our 30 BI groups (rising 189%) in 2023, with the caveats being that its performance reflected an escape from the throes of a deep crypto winter that took hold in 2022 and extended into 2023 (three-year return is negative 23%). And so far this year, its 20% decline is the steepest among our themes. AI came in second with a 63% return last year, notably also being among the minority of our themes with a positive three-year return (7%) and one up so far in 2024.
For this year, on our radar are established Accelerating Tech themes, where investor interest seemingly waned in 2022-23 and where we see clear AI tailwinds for cybersecurity, cloud, 5G. Also, themes where deal acceleration may be a potential catalyst, including digital payments, genomics and, again, cybersecurity.
