2020 Women and Investing Study: Confidence and Concerns for Female Investors

The pandemic has had negative impacts on investments for most affluent women this year, according to new research from J.P. Morgan Wealth Management. But affluent Black and Latinx female investors were more likely to take matters into their own hands, seize opportunities presented by market volatility and feel confident about their goals.

The J.P. Morgan Wealth Management Women and Investing Study reviewed the investing habits of affluent women in 2020. The survey polled women across races and took a deeper look to examine the factors that help Black and Latinx women build lasting wealth.

“Women are already the majority in controlling wealth and that number will only grow,” said Kristin Lemkau, CEO of J.P. Morgan Wealth Management in the U.S. “We see a huge opportunity to help women build their wealth for the long term – however they choose to do it. And that starts by actually listening to them.”

Despite being more confident than their white counterparts about their financial future, more than half of affluent Black and Latinx women surveyed said they faced more challenges to investing, including finding financial advice that fits their needs. And they were more likely to financially support friends and family in 2020.

“Closing the racial and gender wealth gaps demands work across communities,” said Byna Elliott, Head of Advancing Black Pathways for JPMorgan Chase. “What’s interesting to me about this study is that Black girls get a clear head start on building wealth when their parents talk to them about money and set up a savings or investing account.”

The survey polled 1,375 women investors with at least $150,000 in investable assets in October 2020.

Most affluent Black and Latinx women found their own path to investing

The study includes the following significant findings about investing behaviors:

• 19% of affluent Black and Latinx women surveyed started investing in 2020 to capitalize on this year’s market volatility, compared to 5% of affluent white women.
• 75% said they were confident about their financial goals looking ahead to the next 12 months, compared to 50% of white counterparts.
• When starting to invest, 78% of affluent Black and Latinx women used self-directed educational resources, including online educational resources, apps or TV shows, compared to 47% of affluent white women.
• 55% of affluent Black and Latinx women agree that investing is more challenging for people of their race.
• 62% felt confident about achieving their financial goals when they started investing. 

When asked what challenges or barriers affluent Black and Latinx women faced that made it difficult to start investing, 30% cited too much debt, compared to 22% of affluent white women. When they first became investors, 21% noted that services did not fit their needs or they had a bad experience, compared to 7% of their white counterparts.

In addition, nearly 30% of affluent Black and Latinx women financially supported friends and family in 2020, compared to 11% of affluent white women.

“We have to appreciate how experience, education, wealth level and family dynamics impact a person’s view on investing,” said Dr. Kelli Keough, Head of Digital & Client Solutions at J.P. Morgan Wealth Management. “It’s clear affluent Black and Latinx women are working harder to sustain their wealth, but they’re also confident about their financial futures.”

Financial education helped Black and Latinx women make smarter financial decisions

The findings also show a correlation between education and inherited wealth and current financial decisions:

• 84% of affluent Black and Latinx women had savings or investment accounts established for them as a child.
• 61% reported that their parents or caregivers discussed the importance of investing when they were growing up.
• 68% of affluent Black and Latinx women make monthly contributions to their investments as adults.

Among all affluent women regardless of race, 60% had parents or caregivers who invested their own money, and 55% recall hearing or being a part of family discussions about investing as children. Among those who recall these discussions, 61% say the conversations were positive. Of all affluent women, 45% say they felt confident in their ability to achieve their investment goals when first starting to invest, and when asked what impacted their confidence, 12% said it stemmed from what they had learned about investing and advice received from parents or other family members.

Looking Beyond Affluent Communities

While this study examined affluent women, making progress in the racial and gender wealth gap still demands a lot more work across communities. Economic challenges for people of color stretch far beyond investing: according to past research from the JPMorgan Chase Institute, Black and Latinx families have 32 and 47 cents in liquid assets for every dollar held by white families. In addition, homeownership rates are 25% lower for Black and Latinx families and, as rents continue to rise, Black and Latinx households are more likely to be cost-burdened than white households.

To learn more about the J.P. Morgan Wealth Management survey findings, visit: https://www.chase.com/personal/investments/learning-and-insights/article/women-and-investing. To learn more about JPMorgan Chase’s work for communities of color visit The Path Forward.

Methodology

The 2020 Women and Investing Study was an online survey of 1,375 women investors (779 White/Caucasian and 596 Women of Color). J.P. Morgan Wealth Management was not identified as the survey sponsor. The survey was conducted during the month of October 2020. Respondents were identified as having primary or shared responsibility for their households financial and investment decisions. All participants confirmed investable asset levels of $150K to $5M+.  

About J.P. Morgan Wealth Management

J.P. Morgan Wealth Management is the U.S. wealth management business of JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM), a leading global financial services firm with assets of $3.2 trillion and operations worldwide. J.P. Morgan Wealth Management has ~4,400 advisors and ~$530 billion assets under supervision. Customers can choose how and where they want to invest. They can do it digitally, remotely, or in person meeting with an advisor in one of our Chase 3,500 branches throughout the U.S., or scheduling a meeting with a J.P. Morgan Advisor in one of our 21 offices. For more information, go to www.jpmorganwealthmanagement.com. 

INVESTMENT AND INSURANCE PRODUCTS ARE: • NOT FDIC INSURED • NOT INSURED BY ANY FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AGENCY • NOT A DEPOSIT OR OTHER OBLIGATION OF, OR GUARANTEED BY, JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A. OR ANY OF ITS AFFILIATES • SUBJECT TO INVESTMENT RISKS, INCLUDING POSSIBLE LOSS OF THE PRINCIPAL AMOUNT INVESTED

Media Contacts

Michaela Nichols

michaela.e.nichols@jpmchase.com

Veronica Navarro

veronica.navarro@jpmorgan.com