A UK government minister has called for more women to work in the higher echelons of the wealth management and investment management industry.

A UK government minister has called for more women to work in the higher echelons of the wealth management and investment management industry.

Nicky Morgan, minister for women and equalities in the UK government, challenged delegates attending a Wealth Management Association conference in London whether they were doing enough to promote women.

“We need even more women to thrive in the city and across all sectors: in business, in academia, and in the Civil Service and wider public sector. These women don’t need special treatment, but they do need a level playing field; equal status; the same opportunities for the top jobs,” she said.

“Only 3 per cent of hedge fund managers around the world are women. Fewer than 10 per cent of Equity Income managers in the UK are women. And only 7 per cent of retail investment funds are managed or co-managed by women,” Morgan continued.

“As the wealth management and investment community, you play a pivotal role in changing the employment landscape for women. You must challenge your own assumptions about women in your companies,” she said.

Ironically, her comments came on the day when the WMA introduced its new chief executive, Liz Field, who takes over from Tim May, who has been in the post for four years.

“A major hurdle is getting women onto the career path in the first place. We need to be encouraging young women to choose a career in finance and helping them see the opportunities. Mentoring and advocacy are invaluable, from both men and women,” Field said in an emailed statement to WealthBriefing.

“At the end of the day it’s about recognising and using the best talent at your disposal, diversity is important and has been shown to help avoid ‘group-think’, enhance creativity and improve businesses – from profitability to organisational agility,” she said.

A recent report by the British Bankers Association noted that the private banking and wealth management sector in the UK accounts, directly and indirectly, for about 65,000 jobs; the data did not say what proportion of those jobs are held by women.  

The theme of getting more women into the financial services industry has been a theme for some time. The publisher of this news service, through its awards programmes, seeks to honour outstanding women in the sector and urges candidates to come forward for these awards and raise their profiles further. (For more details, see here.)

One of the most prominent women in the global industry is Sallie Krawcheck, the former president of the Global Wealth & Investment Management division of Bank of America; as well as former CEO of Citigroup’s wealth management business. Pax World Management and Ellevate Asset Management - formed by Krawcheck and business partner Allyson McDonald - linked up to manage and distribute the Pax Ellevate Global Women’s Index Fund, a successor fund to the Pax World Global Women’s Equality Fund.

The WMA has 109 member firms; a year ago, it was renamed from being called the Association of Private Client Investment Managers and Stockbrokers. Its members between them oversee more than £650 billion ($1.04 billion) of wealth in the UK, Ireland, Channel Islands and Isle of Man.