Women and Wealth: The Financial Planning Gender Gap and How to Close It

Women are the fastest-growing segment of the global high-net-worth population. UBS and other major wealth managers have documented consistently that women are expected to inherit and accumulate a substantial majority of the wealth transfer underway in the coming decades, as older generations pass assets to their families. Female entrepreneurship is accelerating in most developed economies. Professional women in dual-income households are increasingly the primary financial decision-makers.

Yet the financial planning sector has been slow to adapt to this reality. Research consistently finds that women receive lower-quality financial advice, are less likely to have a financial plan, face greater retirement income shortfalls than men, and are underrepresented at every level of the financial advisory profession. The gender gap in financial planning outcomes is real, well-documented, and costly.

This article examines the structural drivers of the gap, the specific financial planning challenges that women — particularly internationally mobile HNW women — disproportionately face, and the practical strategies for closing the gap in your own financial life.

The Scale of the Gap

The financial outcomes gap between men and women is measurable across multiple dimensions:

Retirement savings gap: On average, women retire with approximately 40–50% less savings than men, depending on the country. In the UK, Office for National Statistics data (as of 2026) shows a median private pension wealth for women aged 55–64 of approximately £50,000–£60,000 compared to approximately £110,000–£120,000 for men in the same age group — a gap of roughly 50%.

Investment gap: Women are less likely to invest outside of workplace pension schemes, more likely to hold excess cash, and when they do invest, tend to hold more conservative portfolios that generate lower long-run returns. Research by Warwick Business School found that women who do invest outperform men — but fewer women invest.

Advice gap: Studies consistently show that women are less likely to seek financial advice, more likely to feel dismissed or patronised when they do, and less likely to trust the financial services industry.

Pay gap contribution: The gender pay gap — which persists in most economies despite decades of effort to close it — contributes directly to the wealth gap through lower career earnings, less pension contribution capacity, and reduced wealth accumulation.

Career break impact: Women are more likely to take career breaks for childcare or caring responsibilities, with lasting effects on pension accumulation, salary progression, and savings capacity.

The Internationally Mobile Dimension — Amplified Challenges

For internationally mobile HNW women, the generic gender gap issues are amplified by cross-border complexity:

The "trailing spouse" problem: In many internationally mobile families, one partner (disproportionately the woman) is the "trailing spouse" — giving up a career and pension entitlements in their home country to follow the primary earner abroad. This can create significant financial vulnerability, particularly in the event of divorce or the primary earner's death.

Pension fragmentation: Career breaks and international moves often result in multiple small pension pots across different countries, which are difficult to consolidate and manage. Missing NIC years in the UK while living abroad reduces state pension entitlement.

Divorce risk and financial independence: Internationally mobile families face additional complexity in divorce — jurisdiction for proceedings, recognition of foreign marriage contracts, and enforcement of maintenance orders across borders. Women who have been financially dependent during a period of international mobility face particularly complex situations.

Estate planning vulnerabilities: Many women in internationally mobile HNW families have inadequate estate planning documentation — wills that are out of date or not recognised in the current jurisdiction of residence, inadequate life insurance, and beneficiary designations that do not reflect their current wishes and circumstances.

Adviser access: In some of the markets where Global Investments operates — including parts of the Middle East, Asia, and Southern Europe — the cultural context can make it harder for women to access independent financial advice, or can create dynamics where the woman's specific financial interests are not adequately represented in family financial planning.

The Investment Confidence Issue

Research by multiple institutions — including Fidelity, Merrill Lynch, and academic researchers — has found a persistent investment confidence gap between women and men. Surveys consistently find that women are significantly more likely to describe themselves as "not confident" in making investment decisions, to defer investment decisions to a male partner or family member, and to express concern about losing money as a reason for not investing.

This confidence gap is not well-founded. When women do invest, the returns evidence suggests they make better long-term decisions: they trade less (lower transaction costs and tax events), take positions based on longer-term research rather than short-term excitement, and are less susceptible to overconfidence and herding. The fundamental issue is not ability — it is engagement.

The reasons for lower engagement are structural, not innate:

Financial education gaps: Research on financial literacy consistently shows lower financial knowledge scores among women, which reflects historical under-provision of financial education to girls and women rather than innate differences.

Representation in financial services: With women making up a small minority of financial advisers, fund managers, and financial commentators, the financial services sector has historically been designed by and for men. Language, examples, and assumed knowledge often implicitly exclude women.

Social messaging: Cultural messages about money — men "manage" finances; women "manage" households — persist in many societies and are internalised from an early age.

Specific Financial Planning Considerations for Women

Beyond the generic investment and planning issues, several financial planning topics have heightened relevance for many women:

Career Break Planning

If a career break is anticipated — for childcare, caring responsibilities, education, or to support a partner's career move — the financial implications should be planned proactively, not addressed reactively. This means:

• Maximising pension contributions in earning years before the break
• Considering voluntary NIC contributions to maintain UK state pension entitlement
• Establishing a personal financial safety net (emergency fund, income protection insurance) that is not dependent on the primary earner
• Considering an offshore investment bond or ISA-accumulated savings that remain accessible and independently owned during the break

Divorce Financial Protection

The financial implications of divorce are almost universally more significant for women, particularly those who have taken career breaks or reduced earnings to support family responsibilities. Proactive steps include:

• Pre- and post-nuptial agreements, particularly important for internationally mobile couples and those with significant inherited or pre-relationship wealth
• Maintaining financial independence — knowledge of household assets, liabilities, and income, and access to personal funds
• Understanding the pension-sharing implications of divorce across different jurisdictions
• Ensuring that estate planning documents (wills, powers of attorney) remain current and reflect the individual's independent wishes

Longevity and Retirement Planning

Women live longer than men in most countries — in the UK the gap is approximately 4 years (ONS National Life Tables: around 82.8 years for women versus 78.8 for men). This means women face a longer retirement period, requiring more retirement savings and more conservative drawdown strategies.

Specific longevity-related planning points:

• Long-term care insurance or provision for later-life care costs (women are more likely to need care and to spend more time in care)
• Investment strategies for the long retirement duration — portfolios that maintain growth exposure through the early retirement years, with gradual transition to more defensive positions
• State pension maximisation — particularly important for women with interrupted NIC records
• Survivorship planning — considering what happens to retirement income in the event of a partner's death

Protecting Wealth Through Inheritance

Women are net recipients of wealth transfers. As the generation that created the post-war wealth in many Western families ages, women are inheriting significant assets. Managing inherited wealth presents specific challenges:

• Integrating inherited assets into an existing investment plan
• Managing emotional aspects of post-bereavement financial decisions
• Understanding the tax implications of inheriting assets in different jurisdictions
• Navigating family dynamics around inherited wealth

Business Ownership and Exits

Female entrepreneurship is growing rapidly. Women who have built businesses face all the same succession, sale, and exit planning challenges as male business owners — but may additionally face specific barriers in accessing private equity, venture capital, or M&A advisers, and may have different post-exit plans (more likely to include philanthropic objectives).

Finding the Right Adviser

A significant factor in improving financial planning outcomes for women is access to advisers who are genuinely attentive to the specific considerations noted above. Several factors are worth assessing when selecting a financial adviser:

• Whether the adviser treats you as the decision-maker, rather than deferring to a male partner
• Whether the adviser proactively discusses the scenarios most relevant to women (career breaks, divorce, longevity, inheritance)
• Whether the adviser can point to specific experience with female HNW clients
• Whether you feel genuinely heard and understood in meetings

The gender of the adviser is less important than their approach and track record, though some women prefer to work with a female adviser for particular topics. The right adviser is one who takes your complete financial picture seriously and who designs recommendations around your specific priorities.

Financial circumstances vary greatly between individuals. This article describes general patterns and considerations — specific recommendations depend on individual circumstances. Tax treatment varies by jurisdiction. This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute personalised advice.

How Global Investments Can Help

Global Investments is committed to providing internationally mobile HNW women with financial planning that is attuned to the specific considerations they face — from cross-border career break planning and pension consolidation to divorce protection, longevity planning, and inherited wealth management. Our advisers work with clients across the international markets in which they live, understanding the specific legal and regulatory contexts that shape financial outcomes for women living internationally.

Contact us through globalinvestments.net for a confidential discussion of your financial planning needs.