Sheryl Sutherland notes that women are claiming new spaces and clamouring for equality in them, creating ripple effects for the larger gender ecosystems and for generations to come

By Sheryl Sutherland*

""Our collective experience has shown that when women have the power to make their own choices, good things happen."”

~ Madeleine Albright

After a somewhat protracted absence from this august website, I am putting pen to paper at the best time - Women's History Month.

And, of course, the 8th of March is International Women's day; a holiday which originated in the socialist and women's suffrage movements of the early twentieth century.

From an economic point of view, women's financial place is surely changing. Women are getting richer. There are now around 40,000 women in the Ultra-High Net Worth (UHNW) category - those who have a net worth of $30 million or more.In Western Europe, women investors now control roughly a third of total assets under management - some €4.6 billion. By 2030, women's share of investments is expected to reach €10 trillion. In the US, the expectation is that an unprecedented amount of assets will be female owned - US$30 trillion. In the UK, more than 60% of assets are now in women's hands. Women are claiming new spaces and clamouring for equality in them, creating ripple effects for the larger gender ecosystems and for generations to come.

Some of the issues Women's History Month raises and their relationship to money and finance:

MISOGYNY:
It's not about hating women, it's about controlling them and their money.

EVERY WOMAN IS A WORKING WOMAN:
Autonomy from men is autonomy from the capital that gives men power.

THE ABORTION PLOT:
In the US and elsewhere prohibition is related to control; lack of money and lack of societal support makes this perilous for women.

REPRODUCTION:
All reproduction should be assisted, women need better strategies and financial support.

JUSTICE:
Justice for women in many countries reflects misogyny - even in the US where the battle over the ERA wipes out a hundred years of women's work as constitution-makers.

POLICING AND PRISONS:
It's very clear here, and in many countries, gendered violence is not contained by current methods.

It will be interesting to see how, in the next couple of decades, women's wealth tackles these historical issues which stem from lack of power - Power = Money - and many others.

*Sheryl Sutherland is director of The Financial Strategies Group, and author of Girls Just Want to Have Fund$ – Every Women’s Guide to Financial Independence, Money, Money, Money Ain’t it Funny – How to Wire your Brain for Wealth, and co-author of Smart Money – How to structure your New Zealand business or investments and pay less tax. You can contact her here.