UBS Investor Watch

Own your worth

  Why women should take control of their wealth to achieve financial well-being

In our latest Investor Watch, we researched extensively into how women worldwide engage with their finances.

We wanted to know: How do women around the world approach their financial well-being? Are they fully engaged in the financial decisions that affect them? And if not, why not?

Here’s what we discovered…

Women are living longer

Did you know…

Lifespans are increasing worldwide – and many women expect to live a long life. Knowing they may live longer, women feel their long-term financial needs are more important in areas such as planning for retirement, long-term care and insurance.

Women know that they are living a longer life

Women are aware of their increasing longevity

Many focus on the present

Many women focus disproportionately on short-term finances…

While women know how living longer might affect their finances, they tend to deal more with short-term financial tasks, such as managing the household’s daily expenses and paying bills.

Most women are heavily involved in day-to-day decisions

Most women are highly involved in short-term finances...

But ignore the future

Many women defer long-term financial decisions to spouses…

Knowing they may live longer, women feel their long-term financial needs are more important in areas such as planning for retirement, long-term care and insurance.

But yet only 20% of women in Hong Kong lead the way on long-term financial decisions like investing and insurance – which can do much more for their future than budgeting daily.

Many women in Hong Kong are leaving major financial decisions to their spouses

Role in long-term investment and financial planning decisions

Many women in Hong Kong are leaving major financial decisions to their spouses

Why should women get more involved?

Life can be full of surprises. Women often delegate major financial decisions although they know these are important for their future. They underestimate their own abilities and overestimate what it takes to be involved in those decisions.

By stepping up and taking control of their financial well-being, women can face the future with optimism.

Women who shared in long-term financial decisions are better prepared for tomorrow

Women who shared in long-term financial decisions are better prepared for tomorrow

To what extent should women get involved in long-term financial decisions?

Poll Form
Read the full reportpdf, 2 MB
A look back at past editions

Are you ready to own your worth?

Why do so many women focus on their short-term finances and not their long-term needs?

Learn more from the infographicspdf, 1 MB

At UBS, we want to empower women to make the most of their wealth. We're doing this by:

  • transforming our business to better serve females
  • tailoring our advice for every woman, enabling them to take control of their finances throughout their lives
  • delivering opportunities for women to connect and to become more comfortable making financial decisions

If you want to know more

Come and see us so we can tell you more about how we work.

About the survey: As women’s life expectancies increase and divorce rates remain high, more women may find themselves solely responsible for their own finances. UBS Global Wealth Management embarked on research to gauge women’s level of and satisfaction with their financial involvement. From September 2017 to January 2019, UBS surveyed 3,652 women. Of these women, 2,251 were married with at least $1m in investable assets. Others (1,401) were either divorced or widowed. These women had at least $250k in investable assets. UBS also conducted in-depth interviews with 71 female respondents. The entire global sample was split across nine markets: Brazil, Germany, Hong Kong, Mexico, Singapore, Switzerland, Italy, the UK and the US.