Women, Wealth, and the Intergenerational Transfer: How Banks Can Rethink Advisory Models for the Next Era of Investing

Over the next decade, an unprecedented generational wealth transfer—estimated at $84 trillion in the U.S. alone—will reshape the financial landscape. Women are expected to control a significant share of this wealth, making them one of the most influential investor groups in history. At the same time, the definition of "investable assets" is evolving, with growing interest in alternatives such as digital assets, Bitcoin, private markets and real estate. This panel will explore how banks and wealth managers can position themselves to serve women investors during this transformation.

Transcription: 
Transcripts are generated using a combination of speech recognition software and human transcribers, and may contain errors. Please check the corresponding audio for the authoritative record.

Mary Ellen Egan (00:09):
Hello everybody. Welcome back. I'm Mary Ellen Egan. I am the... What is my title again? I am the—

Nelle Miller (00:16):
We all wonder that about our own titles.

Mary Ellen Egan (00:18):
Yes. We all wonder, "What does she really do?" Do not ask my partner because she should tell you I do everything. So I'm here today. We're talking about women, wealth, and intergenerational transfer, which is a little bit of a mouthful: How banks can rethink advisory models for the next era of investing. I'm here with... Sorry, one of the speakers could not make it today, Lisa Roberts, so we will miss her. But we have Liz Thomas, head of investments at SoFi, and Nelle Miller, managing director, head of New York for JP Morgan Private Bank.

(00:55):
So I'm going to set the stage a little bit and I'm going to read from my notes just for this part. Over the next decade, an unprecedented intergenerational wealth transfer estimated at about $84 trillion in the US alone will reshape the financial landscape. Women are expected finally to control a significant share of the wealth, making them one of the most influential investor groups in history. Hopefully some of you are going to reap the benefits of this. It will not be me, however, sadly. Intergenerational wealth is more than just a transfer of money. For women especially, it can be an expression of their core values such as security, freedom, and wellbeing for themselves and their family. There was a recent survey that said 87% of women define the purpose of wealth as a means to gain financial security and freedom to live the life they want.

(01:45):
And 85% view it as a way to achieve a better quality of life. When we were talking earlier on our prep call, we were talking about the range of clients. Liz, you have a much younger demographic at SoFi, correct?

Liz Thomas (01:59):
Yeah. So at SoFi, for anybody who's not familiar, we are an app-based personal finance company. We have an invest platform where our members invest in stocks, bonds, mutual funds, whatever they want to do, basically. We're bringing crypto back shortly. The members on our invest platform, more than 60% of them are between the ages of 20 and 40. We've got people who are very much in the accumulation phase of their lives. A few of the things that we do to make that work for them is, as you can imagine in your 20s, you're trying to build wealth. You don't have a lot of money. The industry, historically, has been intimidating for people who felt like they didn't have enough money to do that.

(02:58):
There are even stocks that you can't buy because one share costs $1,000. If you've only got $1,500, guess what? You're not going to buy one share of that stock. So we pioneered fractional shares, and that was purposely to meet our members where they are with the size of their accounts. That's part of the younger generation. When we look across our platform at what they're interested in, interestingly enough, Gen Z—which is 1997 to 2012 birth years—is the most confident in their finances and how they manage them, which I think is awesome. But that means for everybody before Gen Z, we've got some work to do.

Mary Ellen Egan (03:44):
And we're old, so it's not good.

Liz Thomas (03:45):
Right. There's a lot to talk about there, but we do skew younger. Our customer base is interested in different things and has different needs. That's part of what we're trying to do, particularly on the invest platform.

Nelle Miller (04:00):
Yeah. By the way, we could probably learn a lot from you, so I'm glad that we're meeting. I run the New York business for the private bank at JP Morgan Chase. JP Morgan Chase banks half the households in the United States of America. We have them young, we have them old, we have them in between. We have various strategies because I do think that each generation thinks differently. This world is moving fast. Obviously, AI is a major topic—we can count how many times we're going to say AI on stage today—but this is changing quickly and access is important. Education is important. You mentioned crypto; that's coming back. With the new administration, that's something we're really focused on: how to deliver crypto in the right way with the right education around it.

(04:54):
We're thinking about all types of generations and how we can interact with them depending on their own buying behavior. We can be your parents' banker, but we can also be your banker. That's how we think about it within JP Morgan, and we're just very excited to be talking about this.

Mary Ellen Egan (05:16):
Do you think there are differences in how the generations view wealth and how they invest? Do you think the older generation tends to be a little more conservative because of how they were raised or what their values were? Whereas the younger folks have a longer forecast ahead of them and tend to be less risk-averse?

Nelle Miller (05:40):
Think about how quickly this world is moving. If you talk to someone in their 20s, they'll say, "What do you mean your 13-year-old interacts with the world that way?" I think it's totally different how generations are looking at it. It's the same for financial services. With social media and things going viral, keeping up and doing it in a way where you're actually investing for the long term matters. I don't think that age-old advice is going away. You have long-term goals with a portfolio next to those goals, and advice matters, but I think people are going to want that advice delivered differently.

Liz Thomas (06:27):
I actually recorded a podcast this morning with a woman who talks a lot about financial planning in the later years of life. She talks about the transitions we've had to make. Baby boomers had pensions; they're set up pretty well right now, but that was based on how long they stayed at a company. People don't do that anymore. People switch jobs a lot, which is what we're encouraging as a society. But when you switch, you might leave your last job where you were contributing 6% to your 401k, and at the next one, you have to set it up yourself again. You might start back at zero or three percent.

(07:16):
We're setting ourselves backwards on that track. When you think about where women in particular find their information, that has changed the most across generations. My parents' generation—the boomers—read physical newspapers and listened to NPR. Then you move to Gen X; they find it in similar ways but with some differences. Then you get to millennials. I'm what they call a "geriatric millennial." I'm 43.

Nelle Miller (08:02):
I'm 45, so I must be majorly geriatric.

Mary Ellen Egan (08:05):
I'm the geriatric boomer.

Liz Thomas (08:07):
You're an infant Gen Xer. I just made that up.

(08:13):
When you move up in the generations, you get to this newer generation and they want their investment knowledge from TikTok, which is terrifying to me. They want these short-form videos and quick things they can read. When I started at SoFi, I came from a traditional financial institution, Bank of New York Mellon. The CEO told me, "I want you tweeting about all of this." I asked, "You want me to what?" He said, "Yes, all of it, all day long."

Nelle Miller (08:51):
Can you talk to our compliance department? Because I'd love to tweet. Have you gotten into trouble? It's interesting—from BNY Mellon to tweeting and TikTok—but it's correct. That's how people are receiving information. I don't think the law of compounding returns is ever going to go away. Some things are pivotal to how you create wealth and look at the markets. Those aren't going away; it's just the education and interaction with this next generation that is changing. Frankly, it's all of us. We don't just buy a sweater because TikTok does it; some buy Nvidia because TikTok told them to. It's fascinating.

Mary Ellen Egan (09:46):
Regarding educational purposes, I think people of less means often get left out because they're afraid they don't have enough to invest. That was me for a long time, especially when I was a waitress and a bartender. Getting the message out that you can start thinking about this at a younger age is important. For instance, I tell my nephews in their 20s to use apps like Acorns to save money in a way they won't miss. Even something like that can help start someone on a path.

Nelle Miller (10:30):
Even something as simple as, "Don't leave that dollar in your checking account; move it to your savings because a high interest rate environment means you can make money on your money." Access to information has never been better. If you're curious and you have a dollar, you can start somewhere. We didn't have that before. You're going to see a world where more people can invest and save in ways they couldn't previously.

Liz Thomas (11:10):
As members of the financial services industry, we are responsible for providing that and bridging the gap that women experience. We've done surveys at SoFi, and the differences are stark. Women are just as interested in investing—they want to learn and be involved—but they're hesitant. They're not as confident. When asked if they are confident in their knowledge of investing, 40% of women say yes compared to 54% of men. The women probably know just as much, but there's this holdback.

(12:12):
There's still a gap in what we're providing. We're providing education and resources, but maybe we forgot to tell the women about it. We need to reach them better, especially as this wealth transfer occurs and money ends up in women's hands. Women may not control all the wealth yet, but they make 90% of the purchasing decisions. We need to have this knowledge and confidence.

Nelle Miller (12:56):
I find women are focused on outcomes, goals, and purpose. They're less focused on one or two basis points and more on the broader strategy. I love women clients; they rule the world and make most consumer decisions. There is a curiosity there for markets and balance sheets. However, multitasking females often have a million things on their plate, like being a mom, and focusing on a portfolio feels like one more chore.

(13:51)
You have to start young and stay curious. If you start following the stock market in your 20s, it'll never leave you.

Mary Ellen Egan (14:04):
Lisa, who couldn't join us, noted that men are often focused on the numbers—one million, two million—while women ask, "What do I want my children's lives to look like?" Women are notorious multitaskers and often invest more broadly rather than sticking everything in one bucket.

Liz Thomas (14:39):
Women think about money in "buckets." We have the vacation bucket, the kid bucket, the car bucket, and the splurge bucket.

Mary Ellen Egan (14:57):
The wine bucket.

Liz Thomas (15:00):
The wine bucket drains really fast. Men often have just one "money bucket" that pays for everything. Neither way is wrong, but it's more difficult for women to think about goals in historical terms. If you tell a woman she needs to earn 10% per year for her money to last, she might say, "I don't want to take the same risk with my kid bucket as I do with my splurge bucket."

(15:52):
Consequently, women are often more conservative with their investing and don't take enough risk. The reality is that life expectancy shows we will outlive men, so we actually need to take more risk. You often end up talking a woman into taking more risk rather than talking her out of taking too much.

Nelle Miller (16:18):
Regarding women outliving men, a McKinsey report stated that 70% of widows choose a different financial advisor. That tells you the original advisor was talking to the husband the whole time. Women will seek out those who give them the best advice.

Mary Ellen Egan (16:50):
We also talked about the difference between AI technology and the human element. Money is a sensitive topic. People often talk more openly about their sex lives than their credit card debt.

Nelle Miller (17:15):
It's such a faux pas to talk about money.

Mary Ellen Egan (17:16):
People don't do it. There's a reticence to figure out what to do with it. For women, there's often an openness gap. I don't know what half my colleagues or friends make because they won't tell me.

Liz Thomas (17:44):
That means you do know what the other half make?

Mary Ellen Egan (17:47):
I don't know!

Nelle Miller (17:48):
It's an excellent point. When's the last time you walked into a cocktail party and asked a woman, "What stock did you just buy?" instead of talking about how your teenagers are acting? We don't share what we're doing in the money world. Men talk about it every morning—Nvidia, Meta, hedge funds.

Liz Thomas (18:27):
Compliments to the men for making that mainstream. We need to do a better job of normalizing those conversations so we feel comfortable talking about it. I also think there are regional differences. I moved from the Midwest to New York in 2015. I couldn't believe how many people talked about money compared to Wisconsin. People asked me how much my rent was, and coming from Minnesota, I was offended! But I realized people were just more comfortable talking about it here, even if there's still a gap for women.

Mary Ellen Egan (19:16):
I always liked to brag about my rent because I got a rent-stabilized apartment site unseen. I think women want to learn, and it helps to see leaders like yourselves. Sometimes it feels safer for a woman to go to another woman for financial advice, similar to choosing a female doctor. I hope as more women enter the industry, it becomes more attractive to talk about.

Nelle Miller (19:56):
At JP Morgan, we use mathematical tools, but the conversation is often "money therapy." You bring your childhood feelings about money with you, whether you're from a "boom and bust" family or a wealthy one. Our clients' favorite moments are these conversations about goals: Where do you want to be in five or ten years? How do you as a couple think about money? Many couples have never talked about it that way.

(20:49):
It's very behavioral and emotional. Our female clients love it the most. Money is intimate and emotional, but you have to do something with it. If you sit in cash for five years while the S&P is in a bull market, that's not ideal. You have to marry the math with how you feel.

Liz Thomas (21:33):
Exposure to the industry helps. I've been in finance for 21 years. Younger women might look at us and assume we have no work-life balance. My "help" at home is that my husband is a stay-at-home dad. We decided that in the third month of my maternity leave for our seven-month-old. We had a business conversation about where our utility was best spent.

(22:20):
Whatever assumptions you're making about how someone makes it work are probably different from reality. Being in this industry is awesome and can set you up to be comfortable with money and educating your family.

Mary Ellen Egan (23:20):
Women typically find advisors through word-of-mouth. I found my advisor through a best friend. They are men, but I trusted her referral. As women, we can tell our peers what works for us. It's important to be able to say, "I don't know or I don't understand," and know there's nothing wrong with that.

Liz Thomas (24:09):
I tell younger women that this is your moment to ask "dumb" questions. Nobody expects you to know all the answers yet. If you wait too long, you'll be afraid to ask in your 40s. Learning and not being afraid of not knowing builds confidence. You get used to your own voice in meetings.

Nelle Miller (24:53):
With ChatGPT or Perplexity, you can look up terms in the middle of a meeting. We didn't have that before! I use it now because there are things I never asked in my 20s. I run part of the investments business and it's hard to keep up with everything. I'm constantly asking questions of people I trust. Life is fun when you're always learning. Curiosity leads to new paths.

Mary Ellen Egan (25:51):
Is the younger generation investing differently—crypto, stablecoins, private equity, real estate?

Liz Thomas (26:07):
Yes, but if you split it by gender, women's priorities are still day-to-day living expenses and savings. For men, investing is first. Younger generations want headline makers and disruptors. We have an ETF called the SoFi Social 50 that follows the 50 most-held stocks on our platform. It includes tech names and occasionally surprises like Berkshire Hathaway. They are more willing to reach out on the risk spectrum, which has been rewarding lately, but at some point, there will be a pullback. Education and confidence are what keep you in the market during those times.

Nelle Miller (27:54):
It comes down to "bite-size" amounts. You won't get burned if you do the right amount. Crypto and digital assets are in vogue; it's a super interesting space, but just do it in the right size. No one complains when Bitcoin goes up, and you won't be as upset when it goes down if you sized it correctly.

Mary Ellen Egan (28:37):
Are your apps becoming more trusted? Do clients use multiple apps to manage their wealth?

Nelle Miller (28:55):
The Chase app is very user-friendly. People pop onto it to see their top holdings and find news. That's only going to get better.

Liz Thomas (29:29):
We are an app-based platform, so we think ours is the best, though I am also a Chase customer. Everybody is competing for "fingertips"—to be the one app that people use for everything. We try to provide banking, investing, lending, and budgeting tools all in one place. Over time, companies will have to do many things to hold onto customers.

Mary Ellen Egan (31:19):
Which TikTok money influencer should I be following?

Liz Thomas (31:23):
Full disclosure...

Nelle Miller (31:24):
I don't have a TikTok account.

Mary Ellen Egan (31:25):
I don't either.

Nelle Miller (31:25):
I banned TikTok in my family. I've deleted that app 50 times and it keeps popping up.

Mary Ellen Egan (31:43):
The gift that keeps on giving.

Nelle Miller (31:43):
It really is.

Mary Ellen Egan (31:45):
I want to ask you about the ribbon cutting.

Nelle Miller (31:53):
It's a big day for JP Morgan. We had the ribbon cutting at our building in Midtown. It was a six-year journey involving the largest voluntary dismantling of a building in the world. 10,000 people will be in the tower. It's the biggest bet you've seen in New York City. In 2021, when everyone said we'd work from home forever, Jamie Dimon said, "We're going back five days a week." He was right. It's an awesome day for New York.

Mary Ellen Egan (33:16):
Our building is right across the street, so I'll visit.

Nelle Miller (33:20):
Please do. We have 20 places to eat, a bar called Morgan's Pub, and a state-of-the-art gym. Deepak Chopra helped us with the wellness and spirituality aspect. There's even music in the bathrooms! We're making banking cool again.

Mary Ellen Egan (34:16):
You should pump Liz's perfume into the building.

Nelle Miller (34:19):
We have a signature scent!

Liz Thomas (34:25):
Okay!

Mary Ellen Egan (34:37):
We have a few minutes for questions.

Audience Member 1 (34:48):
You mentioned the younger generation is more comfortable taking risks. Does that fundamentally change the financial advice you give? Friends ask, "Why pay a mortgage when I can get a better return elsewhere?" Do you see the fundamentals our parents taught us changing?

Liz Thomas (35:15):
Great question. Yes, advice has to change, but many parents didn't teach fundamentals, so we still start there. I talk about a "risk budget" that changes throughout your journey. Regarding mortgages, that's a product of the times; housing affordability is low and rates are above 6%. There is an educational element to diversification. Many young investors think they only need the "Mag Seven" stocks, but we've seen other trends end poorly, like the 2005 housing boom. The need for education doesn't change, just the topics.

Mary Ellen Egan (36:58):
A programming note before I thank our panelists: Please stay seated for our next panel on venture capital, fintechs, and digital finance. I want to thank Liz and Nelle for your time and great comments. This was a fun panel.