Women do think differently about money

One of Canada’s largest banks is going after the feminine dollar and they are doing so by admitting first that they haven’t historically appreciated the female investor. Naturally, they are starting by promoting their products with martinis. They would have my business.

“Many women feel they are talked down to in this industry,” Charyl Galpin, CEO of BMO Nesbitt Burns said during a panel discussion with all the female senior executives of their bank.

The first mistake they acknowledge is speaking to the husband half of a couple directly, virtually ignoring the wife. Galpin referred to one study which showed that one of the first things widows did in managing the estates their inherited was to fire the financial planner.

Women do look at and treat money differently. Women have less and have to work harder for it. The sacrifices of work when you have children are more poignant than for a man. Additionally, women are able to save less since they have less and are not likely to tolerate any kind of risk – at least not without a hard earned sell.

Online brokerages seem to have enormous success with women. I would venture to say it’s because the computer can’t insult or argue with a woman about her money, but that’s my opinion. The BMO InvestorLine at Nesbitt Burns has had a 300 percent increase in account from 2006 to 2010. The women who hold these accounts trade less, are risk averse but more diversified.

With more single women than ever getting ready to retire, now is the time to service that market. “The fact is that female investing is growing in our market, and the industry needs to keep up,” said Galpin.

Source: Reuters