Former MI6 chief warns CEOs that known geopolitical risks pose biggest threat

In a recent CEO Daily interview, Sir Richard Moore—who headed the United Kingdom's MI6 from 2020 to 2025 and now works with Teneo's Global Political Risk Advisory and Sixth Street—argued that the foremost corporate threat is not a surprise black-swan event but the cumulative effect of known crises such as the pandemic, the war in Ukraine, Iran-U.S. friction and mounting China-related stress. He warned that multinational firms must adopt a hyper-local perspective because traditional blocs no longer act uniformly; for example, EU members differ on China while the Philippines confronts Beijing over the South China Sea.

Moore recommends "derisking" rather than attempting to cut ties with China, given its deep integration in the world economy. Drawing on his intelligence background, he urges leaders to run scenario-based thinking and to cultivate long-term trust with sovereign partners before crises strike. Finally, he cautioned that boardrooms must allow dissenting voices, lest overbearing leadership obscure bad news and lead to poor decisions.