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What the Research Tells Us About Women and Investing

By Sallie Krawcheck

It's always interesting when research proves itself IRL. 

Gonna just take a little bow here this week. Because, despite the market turbulence, Ellevest has been named “one of the digital advisors that performed the best” by InvestmentNews. 

We’ve also been named best mission-oriented investing service by Bankrate (and our mission is you). 

Now, before we go on, it’s important to remember that past performance is no indicator of future results. Plus, there are no guarantees in investing.

But back to that research, which tells us that women investors historically outperform men. We believe our results are also because our Chief Investment Officer, Dr. Sylvia Kwan, and her team were thoughtful and methodical in building Ellevest. We wanted to build a digital investing offering that works for you, for your friends, for your mom, for college grads who want to get their money right, for your mentees, and for your daughters.

Here’s what sets Ellevest apart

Goals-based framework: Do you like spending your time trading stocks? Neither do we. Instead, we see investing as a means to an end — such as investing for a down payment on that new home, the business you want to start, or that trip-of-a-lifetime you’ve only been dreaming about (yeah, that one, you remember), or a dream retirement.

A “risk budget”: Others ask what your risk tolerance is. We think that is beside the point: What instead matters is how much risk you need to take in order to reach your goals. Determining that based on your personal characteristics, and then investing in an appropriate asset allocation, is our job.

A higher chance of success: We believe a 70% likelihood of reaching your goals, through all kinds of markets, provides you with a comfortable level of confidence that you'll be able to achieve your financial goals with your investment plan. (Other investing platforms may show higher forecasts, but those forecasts only have a 50% estimated chance of achievement. You told us that’s not high enough for you.)

Diversification, everywhere: Our priority is portfolio diversification, which further helps reduce overall risk. 

The option to invest for positive impact: For those who want their money to reach even further beyond the barriers that we’ve already broken through.

Affordable (and straightforward) pricing: Aka, no minimums, ever.

While investing was built by men for men, here’s what else helps Ellevest shine

OK, for starters, we’re the only digital investing offering whose algorithm takes gender identity into account, understanding that women earn less, our salaries peak sooner, and we live longer. Pretty important stuff. At least if you’re a woman who doesn’t want to run out of money in retirement. 

The resounding good news is that investing doesn’t have to take that long — unlike things like getting a raise, which can be … a lot. So our advice to women investors is to find a place — we hope it's Ellevest — where you have trust, and just get in the water. Just do it. 

Because at the end of the day, if we don’t control and manage our own money, we don’t control our own lives.


Sallie Krawcheck Signature


Disclosures

© 2023 Ellevest, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

All opinions and views expressed by Ellevest are current as of the date of this writing, are for informational purposes only, and do not constitute or imply an endorsement of any third party’s products or services.

Information was obtained from third-party sources, which we believe to be reliable but are not guaranteed for accuracy or completeness.

The information provided should not be relied upon as investment advice or recommendations, does not constitute a solicitation to buy or sell securities, and should not be considered specific legal, investment, or tax advice.

The information provided does not take into account the specific objectives, financial situation, or particular needs of any specific person.

Investing entails risk, including the possible loss of principal, and past performance is not predictive of future results.

Ellevest, Inc. is a SEC registered investment adviser. Ellevest fees and additional information can be found at www.ellevest.com.

Sallie Krawcheck

Sallie Krawcheck is the founder of Ellevest. In a sea of financial services sameness, Ellevest manages more than $2 billion in assets, and stands apart with its mission to get more money in the hands of women. Prior to Ellevest, Krawcheck was one of the only financial executives of her generation to have held C-suite roles at the largest global banks — as CEO of Merrill Lynch, Smith Barney, US Trust, and Sanford Bernstein and as CFO of Citi. Today, as a venture-funded entrepreneur, she’s beat impossibly long odds to raise $144 million in venture capital funding. Fortune Magazine has called Krawcheck “The Last Honest Analyst,” Barron’s considers her one of the “Most Influential Women in US Finance,” and Vanity Fair has named her to their “New Establishment List.”