A version of this article first appeared in CNBC's Inside Wealth newsletter with Robert Frank, a weekly guide to the high-net-worth investor and consumer. Sign up to receive future editions, straight to your inbox.
More women are entering the wealth management industry, but they have yet to gain ground in client-facing advisory roles, according to a recent study by private wealth intelligence platform Fintrx.
While the data shows improvement in the industry's gender gap, the nuance is still notable. Revenue-generating roles are generally better paid and more conducive to leadership roles, according to Fintrx Vice President of Data and Research Emily Goldman.
"Underrepresentation here directly affects female employees' earnings," Goldman said. "And that lack of opportunity for leadership and ownership is also going to affect their long-term earnings."
Younger women are making inroads in wealth management overall, with women accounting for 37.6% of registered professionals aged 20-30, according to Fintrx. For the 30-40 and 40-50 age brackets, the share of women hovers below 27%.
The shift comes as women's wealth is expected to boom in the coming years. Cerulli Associates estimates $105 trillion in wealth will be passed down to heirs through 2048, with $54 trillion going to spouses. As women tend to live longer than men, they will likely receive the lion's share.
However, while young women are entering the industry in greater numbers, the growth is concentrated in administrative or operational roles, according to Goldman.
Women account for just 20.2% of producing advisors aged 20 to 30, a percentage near identical for advisors aged 30-40 and 40-50. The share is only modestly higher than that of advisors aged 50-60 (18%) and 60-plus (17.1%).
This gender gap is also reflected in the C-suite, according to Fintrx. Women make up 21.5% of C-suite roles at wealth management firms and are more likely to occupy COO or CFO roles than chief executive or investment roles, the company found.
"This points towards firms needing to create better pathways to these revenue-generating roles and leadership," Goldman said. "Because when you enter in operations, compliance, legal — there isn't an easy segue to these book-owning roles, and then long-term strategic leadership roles."
She noted that an increasing number of women advisors are setting up their own firms. In 2025, there were 39 new female-founded registered investment advisory firms, up from 30 in 2021.
"I think that we'll see more and more women break out on their own if they're unable to advance as much or as quickly at wirehouses or larger firms," she said.
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