The North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) launched a new outreach program designed to help state and provincial regulators provide female-focused investor education.
The group announced an initiative that aims to enable local regulators to deliver tools that focus on the unique issues faced by female investors.
“All too often the financial deck is still stacked against women due to unique challenges such as longer life spans, filling the role as full-time caregivers for children and parents, and the gender pay gap,” said Lynne Egan, deputy securities commissioner for Montana and chair of NASAA’s investor education section.
NASAA cited research that found, on average, single women have three times less wealth than the average man, and that 25% of women indicate they have not planned for their financial future.
To address these issues, NASAA developed resources designed to help women plan better and avoid securities fraud.
“It is extremely important that women have the tools to plan for their financial future,” said Christopher Gerold, president of NASAA and chief of the New Jersey Bureau of Securities.
“Our goal is to provide resources to help women strengthen their financial confidence and avoid investment fraud,” he said.
“Research shows that nearly all women will be financially responsible for themselves or their families at some point in their lives. But many are under‐prepared to face these challenges,” said Lisa Hopkins, NASAA’s president-elect and West Virginia’s senior deputy commissioner of securities.