Who Drives the Change: Women Are Set for Wealth Dominance in the Decade Ahead
If you are wondering who drives the change, we are on the cusp of an event never seen before: women poised to control the majority of personal wealth. Over the next decade, a magnificent $30 trillion is set to be transferred to women.
For the first time, women are set to control the majority of personal wealth in the next decade, with a projected transfer reaching $30 trillion. Women are expected to funnel more money towards their families and socially responsible products compared to men. Key players such as Melinda Gates and MacKenzie Scott are setting trends in philanthropy, abundantly supporting women’s causes and nonprofits respectively.
Women of all financial levels are significantly influencing philanthropy through “giving circles”, pooling donations to collectively decide where their money should go. This approach not only enhances their financial influence but also promotes civic engagement and stronger community bonds. With the incoming wave of wealth transfer, women are poised to redefine the meaning of giving – bold, trust-based and joyfully collective.
The Direction of Wealth Transfer
This projection’s significance lies not in the magnitude of wealth being transferred, but rather in the novel way women are anticipated to steer this affluence. Indeed, compared to their male counterparts across generational and income divisions, women are demonstrated to be more generous, allocating more money for their families, households, and socially responsible products.
Philanthropic powerhouses like Melinda French Gates and MacKenzie Scott frequently capture headlines, not only for the amount of their donations but also how they contribute. Gates, merely two weeks post her Gates Foundation departure, declared plans to direct $1 billion towards women’s rights groups within two years, challenging the meager 2% of charity donations that supports women and girls’ causes annually.
In parallel, Scott has channelled an overwhelming $17 billion to over 2,300 nonprofits worldwide since 2020, primarily through unrestricted seven-figure contributions, centering on the knowledge, relationships, and expert advice of change catalysts at the social forefront.
However, the scope of philanthropic transformation isn’t limited to billionaire women; women across all wealth brackets are defining a new paradigm for philanthropy via “giving circles”, an approach that has been popular for several decades.
Giving Circles – A Niche for Collective Philanthropy
In “giving circles”, individuals band together to pool their donations, with each member holding an equal voice in deciding where the money will be donated. According to a recent study by Philanthropy Together, collective giving grew to comprise 4,000 “giving circles” in the U.S. between 2017 and 2023, garnering over $3.1 billion funnelled towards social good causes, with most groups predominantly being women.
Research underlines the pivotal role women play in collective giving. Within these groups, 84% of leaders reported over half their members were women, and 60% of groups boasted women as the sole members. These insights underscore women’s influence as an integral component in over half of all such circles.
The Power of Collective Giving
Women in these circles, encompassing teachers, lawyers, tech leaders, mothers, students, and much more, share a united vision for a brighter future. Through collective giving, women have not only amplified their financial clout but also heightened their civic engagement, bolstered their sense of purpose and amplified the sense of belonging within their giving sisterhoods, as found in the In Abundance report.
Contrary to the traditional individualistic giving approach, collective philanthropy allows for open dialogue, thereby positively influencing both giving and societal norms alike.
The New Wave of Wealth Transfer
The impending wave of wealth transfer will inevitably bring forth a distinct style of giving: bold like Gates, trust-filled like Scott and joyfully collective like many modern giving circles. It’s time all women seized their power and vision, collectively amplifying their influence by joining or starting a giving circle in their community.
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