Women are investing more — but they’re still losing the wealth race

Women are buying more stocks — so why is the wealth gap worse than ever?

For decades, investing wasn't just dominated by men — it was built by them, for them.

"It was designed to impress other men, not women." nab's Gemma Dale told me in an interview a few years back.

As nab's director of investor behaviour, Dale's spent years watching Australia's investment landscape evolve. She's seen more women enter the market, more platforms cater to them and more women talking about their investments.

So ahead of International Women's Day, I caught up with Dale to ask again: Are women finally catching up, or is the investment world still playing by old rules.

Are more women investing?

Well yes, but it's not as simple as all that.

According to Dale, the rise of digital investing has helped women enter the market in record numbers.

"Online investing is much more accessible to everyone, but possibly women even more so," Dale said.

Platforms like Sharesies, Superhero and Pearler have flooded the Australian market, some even targeting female investors directly. In 2022, Sharesies ditched Australia's finance bro aesthetic by launching a pink-toned interface, aiming to make investing feel more inclusive.

Nab's trading platform nabtrade has seen its customer base more than double since 2020, with younger investors — and more women — entering the market.

"What has been really interesting is how many female investors have chosen to start buying ETFs and how they are starting earlier as a result of that decision, because it takes a lot of the stress out of investing."

Women still lag behind men

Despite more accessibility, women remain underrepresented in investing — that's not just a statistic, but a long-term risk to financial security.

According to a recent Finder survey, 30% of Australian men invest in stocks outside of super, compared to just 15% of women.

Women also invest less than half the amount men do — $11,934 on average compared to $31,100.

The gap exists beyond Australia's shores too. A BNY Mellon study found that just 28% of women feel confident about investing their money. And a survey by Capital.com showed 58% of women considered it too risky, while 52% felt they weren't knowledgable enough to invest.

Women invest differently — and it's not a bad thing

While women are investing more, they still tend to be more cautious than men — and for good reason.

"Women still earn less, take career breaks as a result of having children, and therefore have more to lose if they take unnecessary risks with their investments," Dale explained.

This isn't necessarily a bad thing. Studies show that men are more likely to take excessive risks and are also most likely to lose money on active trading and speculative investments.

Women on the other hand tend to prioritise steady, long-term investing strategies, such as exchange traded funds (ETFs).

"ETFs have taken the biggest fear factor out of investing — 'What if I make a mistake?'" Dale said.

"Women tend to be more concerned about losing money, so a product that is naturally diversified and simple to understand has become extremely popular."

So, if women are investing smarter, why are they still behind?

The real issue

The gender pay gap is a hot topic during IWD, for good reason. But many Aussies forget there's an even bigger wealth gap.

According to Finder research, the average Australian woman has a net wealth of $428,000, while the average man has $597,000 — a whopping $169,000 difference.

So, while the pay gap is 21.8% according to government numbers, Finder data shows the wealth gap is actually around 40%.

What needs to change?

Dale acknowledges there have been lots of positive changes for women in finance over the last few years.

"Particularly with visibility of women in finance, influencers who genuinely care about their audiences, and products and services that are low cost, more easily accessible and therefore more attractive to women," Dale said.

But she says there's still a long way to go.

"Women still earn less, have much higher caring burdens and are still somewhat later to investing than would be ideal — but we're making progress. Early education can make a great difference, especially in schools."

For now, the numbers tell a clear story: investing alone wont close the gender wealth gap. Unless pay disparities, superannuation inequities, and financial literacy gaps are addressed, women will continue to lag behind.