New study reveals how film and TV reinforce the gender investment gap
A study from King’s Business School and investment platform eToro examined several major films and television series from the last 15 years and how they have reinforced the gender investment gap, which is more than half a trillion pounds.
This included The Wolf of Wall Street, a 2013 biopic featuring Leonardo Di Caprio as stockbroker Jordan Belfort, and Industry, a BBC hit series created by former investment bankers.
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Other media included in the study were Dumb Money, Arbitrage, and Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps.
Dr Ylva Baeckström, who led the research, studied only finance-related films and television shows.
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She found that men occupied three-quarters of screen time, while women were often sidelined as supporting characters.
But it’s more than just running time which is reinforcing the gender investment gap, the research said.
In many of these films and television shows, men are cast in roles of status, such as a CEO, while women play wives or sexualised roles.
The Big Short, a 2016 film based on Michael Lewis’ book of the same name, was one example the study referenced.
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The film cast Steve Carrell, Christian Bale, Ryan Gosling, and Brad Pitt as experts in the finance industry.
Meanwhile, Margot Robbie was enlisted to explain subprime mortgages in a bubble bath.
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“To challenge gender stereotypes and make progress towards gender equality in finance, there should be portrayals of women (and men) as skilled and successful experts” the study stated.
“This includes portraying men and women mentoring others and demonstrating financial literacy, and normalising the idea of women as experts in the field, without having to do so naked in a bubble bath as in The Big Short.”
Baeckström said there is evidence that what we watch on screen affects our behaviour, and these portrayals are “perpetuating the gender investment gap.”
How large is the gender investment gap?
A study by Boring Money, a financial guidance website, estimated the gap between the amount invested by men and women to be at £567 billion.
The gap was evident across all age groups surveyed, with 18% of women between the ages of 25 and 34 holding some form of investments.
In comparison, 37% of men in the same age bracket were investing.
“The gender investment gap remains stubbornly and frustratingly high and has got worse in 2024.
"Shockingly, it’s higher than the GDP of Poland or Argentina”, said Holly Mackay, CEO of Boring Money at the time.
Research from Aviva also made similar findings.
It said men are twice as likely to have stocks and shares ISAs, a tax-efficient account for investing, than women.
Previous research by Baeckström suggests some of this is because women are often less financially literate and have lower confidence in making investment decisions.
“We know that a lack of confidence and the perception that investing is too complicated hold women back from investing”, started Lale Akoner, Global Markets Analyst at .
To help close this gap, offers a free online academy where anyone can learn more about finance and investing.
It said it can be a great place for women to start jargon-free terms and gain confidence.
You can visit eToro’s online academy here
Don’t invest unless you’re prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment, and you should not expect to be protected if something goes wrong. .
Introducing some of the world's most successful women investors
While research suggests a gender investment gap remains, there are plenty of examples of successful women investors.
Cathie Wood, for example, is the founder and CEO of Ark Invest, an American asset management company.
In 2020, she was named the Bloomberg stock picker of the year after one of her company’s ETFs rose sharply in value.
Today, Forbes estimates her total net worth to be around $60 billion, or around £48 billion at the time of writing.
Those interested in mimicking her trading style can find many of Ark Invest’s ETFs on .
In the UK, Ophelia Brown is another example. She founded Blossom Capital in 2018 – a venture capital firm which has raised over $1 billion for investors.
Today, it invests in innovative projects across Europe and the US.
“We all have a role to play in addressing the gender investment gap,” said Dan Moczulski, UK Managing Director at .
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He continued by saying that one way to close the gap is to hold conversations about investing, which is why the investment platform is launching its “Loud Investing” initiative.
How to learn more about investing
eToro believes trading or investing isn’t something just for men in suits and ties.
Of course, you’re not expected to learn complicated mathematical formulas to choose your shares – but you can learn basic skills which can help potentially take your portfolio a long way.
On the , you can read in-depth guides ranging from what a dividend stock is to more advanced topics like futures trading.
If you prefer to watch videos instead, then you can also check out the video tutorials and webinars on the .
No matter your experience as an investor, there’s always content for you to learn something new.
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