Handelsbanken report highlights persistent gender gap in finances

A new report published by Handelsbanken Wealth & Asset Management has highlighted the persistent gender gap in both wealth and financial education and confidence.

The Building your financial future: Are you in control? report, published ahead of International Women’s Day on Saturday 8th March, reveals women in the UK are still significantly worse off than their male counterparts, who hold an average of £177,000 in financial assets, compared to £218,000 for men. Findings also highlight how the gender divide in financial literacy and confidence in investment markets and products is impairing women’s ability to build wealth, while also exploring how different generations are experiencing the financial world differently.

Stephen Cowling, Acting Head of Wealth Management at Handelsbanken Wealth & Asset Management said:

“This year’s wealth survey has shown continued evidence of the ongoing disparity between men’s and women’s finances across the country.

“The gender wealth gap, which has been created by historical and systematic factors, will take many years to balance out, particularly as younger women continue to feel that they have not received a proper financial education. Building financial literacy and confidence among women of all ages is crucial in turning the tide and reaching an equal level of wealth generation.”

This year’s research reveals that just 19% of adult women feel they received a good education on managing money in school compared to 23% of men. Reassuringly, the future looks brighter: younger generations (aged 18-34) are more likely to feel they had a good education than those aged 50 years or over (34% versus 13%), suggesting efforts to narrow this gap through education are beginning to work.

Regardless, more women than men in every age bracket admit to having limited or no understanding of financial products such as investments, mortgages, pensions, and insurance. Notably, nearly two thirds (64%) of women claimed to have little or no knowledge of investments compared to 43% of men, while over half (53%) of women admitted to the same for pensions, compared to 34% of men.

This year, the Handelsbanken survey indicated – once again – that men are still guiding long-term financial products, while women are typically running household finances. Women are more likely to have oversight of groceries and other household bills: 75% of the women who responded to our survey, versus 63% of the men. Meanwhile, men are more likely to have responsibility for longer-term products such as pensions (43% versus 32%) and investments (38% versus 19%). When it comes to finance, the traditional stereotype of women managing household budgets while men take care of financial products and services is appearing to linger.

Tellingly, wealthier consumers were more likely to embrace higher risk investment options. More than four fifths (86%) of people with assets of over £100,000 felt comfortable with a higher risk product in their search for higher returns, compared with 73% of those with assets under £100,000.

The research also found that men are far more likely to feel confident offering financial advice to friends and family (38% versus 29%).

Stephen Cowling concluded:

“As wealth advisers, we are committed to bridging this gap by empowering women to build secure financial futures with confidence. This means examining our own biases, hosting women-focused events, and guiding clients toward the best financial education resources available.”

This report follows Handelsbanken Wealth & Asset Management’s national Wealth Survey in 2024, ‘Gender and generation: unravelling the wealth gap’, which also delved deep into the issues surrounding wealth, personal finances and long-term financial planning amongst men and women in the UK.

Research was conducted for Handelsbanken by Opinium among a nationally representative sample of 4,000 UK adults between 3^rd and 7^th January 2025. Respondents were chosen on a nationally representative basis, weighted evenly by gender, age, region and value of financial assets. Of the overall sample, 1,927 (48.4%) were male and 2,058 (51.6%) were female, while 779 (19.5%) had a net worth of more than £100,000.