Closing the Gender Investing Gap: Why It Matters More Than Ever

Women today are earning more, saving more, and living longer than ever before. So why are we still investing less?

Historically, women have been excluded from financial decision-making and bygone attitudes still echo in how we view and support female investors. Just 64% of women who do invest actually consider themselves investors, compared to 76% of men, and women are still less likely than men to seek help from wealth managers. Instead, Gen Z and Millennial women are turning to social media for investing ideas and relying on friends and family for advice.

This investing gap isn’t about women being risk-averse, it’s about systemic gaps in income, confidence, access, and tailored advice. The system simply wasn’t built with us in mind.

And yet, the interest is there. A recent study found that 71% of women agree that investing is key to building generational wealth. For many, it’s about ensuring a quality life for their families, planning for retirement, or being able to manage healthcare and long-term care costs. Women invest with purpose; prioritizing stability, companies that align with their personal values, and focusing on long-term goals.

Waiting to start can be surprisingly costly: saving for retirement just 10 years later can mean having to save nearly 3x more each month and earning far less in compounding interest. Small delays compound into big differences.

This isn’t a personal issue, it’s a systemic one and closing the investing gap isn’t just good for women. It’s critical for economics, families, and long-term gender equity.

Fun Fact: The first female CEO of a North American stock exchange was Canadian! In 1993, Barbara G. Stymiest, then Executive Vice President & CFO of BMO Nesbitt Burns, became the first woman from an investment firm to serve on the board of the Toronto Stock Exchange.