Written by: Alexandra Nelson and Amber Stewart | Gresham Partners LLC

A Defining Moment for Women of Significant Wealth

Women have long played influential roles in preserving family legacy, philanthropy, and enterprise, and today they are assuming an even greater leadership position in the stewardship of significant wealth. That evolution is reshaping the wealth management industry, as women inherit and control more wealth and make more financial decisions than ever before.

We are living through one of the largest intergenerational wealth transfers in history. For ultra-high net worth (“UHNW”) families, this shift is not only about assets changing hands, but leadership, governance, responsibility, and legacy. Women are increasingly at the center of this transition as founders, inheritors, spouses, philanthropists, or family leaders and are assuming primary decision-making authority over complex financial structures and multi-generational enterprises.

A Historic Shift in Wealth

The share of wealth controlled by women continues to rise. As a result, more women are independently leading financial decisions, regardless of whether they are single, married, divorced, or widowed. Not only has women’s responsibility around wealth grown but so has their confidence. Women’s confidence in managing their finances has also increased meaningfully in recent years. McKinsey research found that the share of U.S. women under 50 who expressed confidence in achieving their financial goals rose from 48% in 2018 to 61% in 2023.

In addition, two significant wealth transitions will reshape the financial landscape over the coming decades. The first transition will occur as trillions of dollars pass from one spouse to another. Because women tend to live longer than men, most inter-spouse wealth transfers will result in women assuming primary control of family assets. Second, the “Great Wealth Transfer” will move significant assets from older generations to heirs, and women will receive a substantial portion of this wealth as daughters, trustees, foundation leaders, or beneficiaries.

Both transitions represent moments of profound responsibility through managing assets, making long-term decisions, supporting family members, and defining legacy. For UHNW women, these transitions will include oversight of concentrated business interests, complex trust and estate structures, philanthropic foundations and donor advised funds, and family governance.

How UHNW Women Approach Wealth

Research and client experience show that many UHNW women bring distinctive priorities and leadership styles to wealth stewardship. These women often evaluate decisions through a broader lens, prioritizing resilience and continuity over short-term performance metrics. They think in terms of long-term family cohesion, reputation and values preservation, intergenerational education, and strategic legacy design.

Women who steward significant wealth frequently take a deliberate and comprehensive approach to decision-making, involving deep due diligence and strategic oversight. While all women navigating wealth transitions face important decisions, UHNW women encounter additional layers of complexity, including governance and decision authority, estate and tax strategy, business ownership and liquidity events, and privacy and security.

The Importance of the Right Advisory Relationship

For many UHNW women, the advisory relationship must function less as a transaction and more as a coordinated leadership partnership. The right advisory team should provide integrated oversight across investments, estate, tax, and governance; translate complexity into clarity; facilitate family and outside advisor conversations; and align strategy with both financial and personal priorities.

While UHNW women do not necessarily prefer working exclusively with women advisors, representation and team composition matter. UHNW women favor advisory firms that include women in decision-making roles, demonstrate leadership diversity, and foster collaborative, team-based client service models. In general, women are highly collaborative and referral oriented and are significantly more likely to recommend that relationship when they trust their advisor.

Advising ultra-high-net-worth families through periods of transition requires multidisciplinary thinking, collaborative leadership, and a long-term perspective. At Gresham Partners, our team structure reflects that philosophy, bringing together diverse viewpoints and expertise to help clients navigate complex financial decisions with clarity and continuity. Today, 40% of our advisors are women, well above the national average[1]. Over the past almost 30 years, Gresham has helped UHNW clients in the following ways:

  • Provided a UHNW widow and her family with clarity, simplicity, and confidence after the family patriarch passed away. We did this by integrating legal, tax, and investment professionals into a unified framework and aiding in the full administration of the deceased spouse’s estate, ensuring all filings and distributions were completed on time and in full compliance. This process helped strengthen family relationships, with each member understanding their roles and legacy goals.
  • Worked with a UHNW woman business owner to provide pre-transaction planning, including tax structuring, estate plan strategies, and liquidity analysis. We helped create a post-sale investment strategy and supported the implementation of legacy planning. We also offered ongoing governance and coordination by unifying advisors, delivering comprehensive reporting, and recommending opportunistic planning strategies.
  • Empowered a UHNW woman to define her role and voice within a newly wealthy family after stepping away from her career to focus on raising young children. By facilitating the development of clear family values and a legacy framework, we aligned long-term priorities, wealth stewardship, and multigenerational planning. We also established foundational governance and education structures to support confident decision-making and intentional wealth transfer as the family grows.

Looking Ahead

The wealth landscape is evolving rapidly. Women are increasingly leading at the highest levels of wealth stewardship. UHNW women are shaping businesses, directing philanthropic capital, guiding family governance, and designing legacies that will endure for generations.

Financial advisory today is about more than portfolio management. It is about confidence, security, alignment with values, and preparing for life’s inevitable transitions. By building strong advisory relationships early, engaging in open dialogue, and planning thoughtfully for the future, UHNW women can approach the coming wealth transition with clarity and control.

If you are thinking about your own financial future or your family’s legacy, or preparing to navigate a transition of wealth, we welcome the opportunity to have a thoughtful and confidential conversation.

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[1] https://www.financialplanningassociation.org/learning/publications/journal/APR25-half-population-waiting-you-lets-go-OPEN?utm_source=chatgpt.com