Top High-Growth Digital Industries to Invest in for 2020

There is no denying that 2019 has been a tumultuous year for investors. Following the sugar rush of 2018, during which the stock market reached record highs worldwide, 2019 has largely been characterized by an unending series of warning signs for the global economy.

Famously, the bond yield curve in the US and the UK inverted this summer for the first time since 2008, a sign that is generally taken to mean that a recession is on the horizon. In addition, some of the biggest companies in the world, many of which had extremely promising prospects just a year earlier, filed for bankruptcy in 2019. Among these are the retail giant Forever 21, the shoe supplier Payless, and the utilities giant PG&E.

The result is that investors are looking for a safe harbor to invest in for 2020, and the tech sector seems to offer that security. Here are the most promising and stable digital industries you should be looking toward for investment in 2020.

1. SaaS

SaaS, or software-as-a-service, is the practice of "renting" out software capabilities to companies as an outsourced service. Think Amazon Web Service or HostGator's physical server provision services - or even Microsoft's new approach to selling and updating Windows. Companies prefer to pay for expertise and top-notch service rather than developing in house, which is why the SaaS industry is predicted to hit an all-time-high value of $157 billion in 2020. Better start investing now.

2. Online Casinos

The gaming sector more generally has seen a lot of ups and downs in recent years, but the online casino industry is arguably the most robust of them all. Thanks to the proliferation of global platforms that provide online pokies real money no deposit casino gaming to players anywhere in the world, industry growth is expected to continue into the double digits in the year ahead. Tens of millions of people now play online casino games on mobiles, tablets and computers alike, which tells us that this is an industry with a long future ahead.

Source: Pixabay

3. Social Networking

It wasn't long ago that people were predicted that the meteoric success of social media giants was nothing but a bubble. However, the long-term trends and predictions do not seem to bear this out. Industry leaders such as Facebook and Twitter have seen their profits and share prices skyrocket over the course of 2019, despite being plagued with scandals. For 2020, their continued growth seems all but guaranteed, so now may be the best time to invest.

4. Digital Therapeutics

A niche, emerging industry that savvy investors may want to break into while share prices are low. The digital therapeutics industry largely involves the use of apps and web platforms to provide therapeutic healthcare to people suffering from mental illness and cognitive conditions. The market is expected to almost triple in value to around $4.4 billion by 2023, with the US FDA approving a string of therapeutic apps across 2019 that will become accessible via health insurance programs.

Few people can accurately predict what 2020 will bring, but the data tells us that the strongest industries are digital. Investors and market hawks should look towards these thriving industries in 2020.

This article does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors or management of EconoTimes.