Industry urged to recognise advice needs of women
While women receiving financial advice generally have more confidence in their capabilities with financial matters, only a small proportion believe financial advice is adequately tailored to women, according to new research.
A study undertaken by Fidelity International in Australia, called the Financial Independence of Women, found that only 49 per cent of women say they feel financially independent, compared with around 58 per cent of men.
The study, which surveyed 2,000 participants, also found that more than half of pre-retiree women have financial stress that has impacted their health.
Fidelity International managing director Alva Devoy said the research found that advised women had more confidence in their abilities to manage their finances.
“Advised pre-retiree women are about five times more likely than unadvised women to rate their knowledge of financial matters as very good,” said Ms Devoy.
“That kind of confidence is key to taking control of your financial future and engaging with strategies and plans that provide a solid financial future.”
However, Ms Devoy said the finance industry as a whole needs to do more to support women, particularly with how it connects with women.
“You have one out of every two women saying investment information is complicated and one in four describing it as intimidating,” she said.
“Only 12 per cent of women think its clear, there is a very small proportion of women who think advice has been tailored to women within the total ecosystem.”
Failing to connect with women can also have implications for the resilience of advice businesses, she added.
“If you think about a couple who is receiving advice from an adviser, if the male dies, the chance of losing that business with the female remaining is exceptionally high,” she said.
“How you service different cohorts within your client base matters, of course we know it matters in terms of societal benefit but it matters to the resilience of their businesses.”
Ms Devoy said it’s important that advisers recognise what women are looking for from a financial advice and how to meet that need.
“While two in three pre-retiree women want to work with a financial adviser, only one in 10 wants a professional to take care of everything for them. Instead, a significant majority, almost three in five, want their adviser to support and guide them, but still be in control,” she said.
She also said the growing number of female advisers in the industry was a positive step that will help.
“Hopefully women feel they can interact more with female advisers and improve their confidence and increase their capability as investors,” she said.
Miranda Brownlee
Miranda Brownlee is the deputy editor of SMSF Adviser, which is the leading source of news, strategy and educational content for professionals working in the SMSF sector.
Since joining the team in 2014, Miranda has been responsible for breaking some of the biggest superannuation stories in Australia, and has reported extensively on technical strategy and legislative updates.
Miranda also has broad business and financial services reporting experience, having written for titles including Investor Daily, ifa and Accountants Daily.
