Every December, the strategy team at Saxo Bank publish their Outrageous Predictions for the coming year, some serious, some not so serious.
For 2026, the team has once again put together a collection of out-of-the-box, bonkers themes which, while they might seem highly improbable, just might come true.
In total there are nine themes, but we’re focusing on the six we think are most interesting from an investor’s viewpoint.
We have to start with tech, so how about Q-Day arriving early – Q-Day being the day when quantum computers can unlock public-key encryption, making large amounts of sensitive data vulnerable including the digital locks on cryptocurrencies.
Cue the collapse of Bitcoin, Etherum et al, and a surge in the gold price to $10,000 as every bank and government scrambles to rebuild trust in a post-quantum ‘security stack’.
Or how about the dollar losing its supremacy as the world’s reserve currency after the Chinese government unveils a gold-linked offshore yuan for trade?
It might sound fanciful, but faith in the dollar has been waning for decades, while China has been one of the biggest buyers of gold, to what end?
In politics, the US mid-term elections may not throw up a big surprise but there is a wave of support for strengthening, not weakening, democratic institutions.
As the authors put it, Trump stays Trump, but America starts to move on.
In markets, the SpaceX IPO sends the valuation of all ‘space economy’ stocks into orbit and companies begin discussing moving manufacturing and data centre capacity to the Moon.
Closer to home, GLP-1 weight-loss drugs become so ubiquitous they are even available for our pets, meaning we all start living longer, healthier lives and food and drink companies have to up their game dramatically.
Finally, AI progresses so far that a Fortune 500 company appoints an artificial CEO – who proceeds to do an excellent job for the business and stockholders, raising the question of whether more companies should adopt AI bosses.
For the full list of Outrageous Predictions, see here: https://www.home.saxo/en-gb/insights/news-and-research/thought-leadership/outrageous-predictions
Disclaimer: This content is for information only and is not investment advice. Always do your own research before investing. Click here to see full disclaimer.
