We may have come a long way, but when it comes to financial portfolios, it seems that men feel a lot more comfortable making decisions about the directions of their investments.
In British Columbia, 63% of women feel confident when making investment decisions, according to a BMO InvestorLine survey. This is a full 20 percentage points lower than the 83% of men who feel the same way.
B.C. women are also less confident than women nationally, where 68% feel sure of themselves when making these decisions. The national average for men was the same as in B.C.
“Women currently control one-third of all wealth in North America and this is increasing by 8% annually,” said July Barker-Merz, president of BMO InvestorLine. “We need to adjust our thinking accordingly.”
Why do women lack this confidence when it comes to deciding where to put their money? According to the study, the number one reason (83%) is that investing has traditionally been viewed as “men’s work.” The survey also found that 58% of respondents feel that society isn’t as supportive of women making investments in the first place as they are of men.
“History and society have not viewed men equally with respect to investing,” Barker-Merz said.
As well, almost half of respondents – 48% – felt that women are “intimidated” by investing. Barker-Merz said this means financial institutions need to work to understand and support the different approaches taken by investors of both genders.
For example, she said, women are around twice as likely as men to depend on advice when it comes to making decisions (in B.C.: 30% versus 14%; nationally: 28% compared with 15%). Women are also more likely to look for education to help in their decision-making.
@EmmaHampelBIV
