New research has found that there is a £15bn gap between the value of investments made by millennial and generation X women and men. This suggests that investment providers are failing to connect with a female audience.
The research, carried out by research fim Kantar TNS, found that women aged between 21 and 53 hold £14.3bn of investments where men the same age hold £29.3bn.
The language and jargon used in the investment sector was identified as potentially off-putting for female investors.
It was found that the gap was partially attributed to “unconscious barriers” and embarrassment over a perceived lack of knowledge that could stifle female participation in investments.
Alice Moss, managing director for qualitative research at Kantar TNS, said: “We wanted to understand the root cause behind the huge gap in investment levels and found that a complex web of practical, emotional and unconscious barriers is inhibiting women’s participation in the sector.
The findings also showed that women were “considerably less financially engaged” than their male peers, with just 26% of millennial women considering themselves to have a high level of financial engagement, compared with 55% of men.
Having the confidence to make financial decisions and invest for the future is extremely important for both men and women. It is therefore important that the industry starts addressing the way it speaks about investment opportunities.
“Moving women up just one confidence decile could be worth £12.4bn for millennials and £24.4bn for generation X females”.
The traditional approach isn’t working for women so how can the industry change to make investment more appealing?
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