According to McKinsey & Co. forecasts, by 2030, women in the United States will control $34 trillion, about 38% of all investable assets. This is almost twice as much as in 2023 and indicates significant changes in the distribution of financial resources, Bloomberg writes.
The main reasons for women’s wealth growth are demographic and social factors. Women tend to live longer than men, which leads to their inheritance of family capital.
In addition, more and more women are building successful careers, contributing to an increase in their independent income. This trend is being strengthened by the fact that women increasingly take up senior positions in companies and become financial heads of families.
According to Julius Baer, a wealth management company, in 2023, the share of women with ultra-high net worth (defined as wealth of $30 million or more) increased to 11%, up from 6.5% in 2010.
Bloomberg notes that such changes look revolutionary from a historical perspective. As recently as 50 years ago, women in the United States could not open a bank account or apply for a credit card independently.
Today, at least 62 female billionaires are among the world’s richest people, controlling about 11% of the wealth measured by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. However, despite progress, women still earn an average of 84% of men’s income and hold only 12% of senior management positions in public companies.
In Fidelity’s Women and Investing 2024 study, only 71% of women reported owning stocks, compared to 80% of men. However, this figure was higher than 60% in 2023 and 44% in 2018. Women are more likely than men to characterize their approach to investing as “conservative.” More than 70% say they would like to invest their savings earlier.
According to McKinsey, in Western Europe, women currently hold approximately one-third of all assets under management – about €4.6 trillion ($4.85 trillion). This figure is expected to rise to 45% by 2030.
According to the consulting company, women’s salaries will increase annually by 8.1% during this period compared to 2.7% for men. At this rate, they will reach parity with men by the early 2030s.