Do women invest differently than men? And if so, why is that? These were the kinds of questions explored in a large-scale study by the market research institute puls, commissioned by Quirin Privatbank, of which quirion is a part. The representative survey brings a number of differences between the two genders to light. Five findings that stand out.
1) Women invest less often
43 percent of the women surveyed have invested money. Among men, the figure is 62 percent. 37 percent of women use a savings plan, compared with 49 percent of men. That women invest less frequently is, of course, closely tied to their financial means. Only a quarter of the women surveyed are the main earner in their household. 39 percent work part-time (men: 10 percent). But that is not the only reason. Other factors also have a strong influence on investment behaviour, for example self-confidence.
2) Men believe they know more
When asked who in a relationship has a better grasp of finances, 59 percent of men answer „Me“ (women: 28 percent). „A man reads one specialist article about investing and thinks he knows everything,“ observes Dr. Konrad Weßner, Managing Director of puls Marktforschung. „A woman – to put it a bit sharply – reads five books about investing and still thinks she doesn’t know enough to get started.“
3) Female investors tend to trust interest-bearing products more
The investment goals of „building up a financial cushion“ (women: 62 percent, men: 53 percent) and „saving for retirement“ (women: 54 percent, men: 51 percent) matter to both genders. But when it comes to the path towards these goals, many are still not tapping the return potential of the capital markets. The favourite investments in each case are overnight and fixed-term deposit accounts – even though these have generated barely any returns in recent years. Women also tend to trust actively managed funds and passbook savings accounts more, while men lean more towards ETFs and individual stocks – though among younger generations, women too are increasingly investing in ETFs.
„The rules of investing are the same for everyone,“ stresses Carolin Nawroth, wealth advisor at Quirin Privatbank. The relationship between return and risk can be optimised on the basis of scientific evidence through broad diversification in global ETF portfolios. „That way you don’t miss out on the return opportunities of the capital markets, but at the same time you take no unnecessary risks – and still invest cost-effectively.“
4) Fear of price swings holds women back more strongly
The differences in investment behaviour align with differences in attitudes towards investing. The view that investing in the capital market is only for professionals is shared by 43 percent of women (men: 29 percent). The fear of possibly having to record a loss weighs on 50 percent of women (men: 34 percent).
Not everyone can handle the price swings of a 100-percent equity portfolio. By deliberately adding bonds, however, these can be reduced over the long term. This is exactly how quirion approaches it: with a total of ten variants, the global portfolios offer alternatives for every risk appetite. Through savings plans, investors can build wealth even with small monthly amounts.
5) Female investors seek the personal conversation
When it comes to whether investing with or without advice would be preferred, women tend to favour the „all-round worry-free package“. Considerably more men than women would rather invest without advice – or if with advice, then only online. The flexibility to be able to draw on advisory services when needed is something younger women in particular wish for.
Whichever option you favour: alongside purely digital wealth management, quirion also offers service packages with online coaching and personal advice. These can be booked easily by switching packages.
