A new global study from WTW highlights a startling difference between the wealth accumulation of men and women at the point of retirement, around the world. The WTW Global Gender Wealth Equity Report, shows that, on average, women are expected to reach retirement with just 74% of the wealth accumulated by men, with the difference across all countries included in the analysis ranging from 60% at worst to 90% at best.

"The results from our global analysis are startling," says Manjit Basi, senior director, Integrated & Global Solutions. "It shows that there is a gender wealth gap consistently across the 39 countries that we studied. The primary drivers contributing to gender-based wealth disparity include gender pay gaps and delayed career trajectories. Additionally, gaps in financial literacy and family caregiving responsibilities outside the workplace influence women's participation in paid employment and therefore their ability to build wealth."

The study also highlights that the gender wealth gap at retirement increases with seniority. Globally, women in senior expert and leadership roles were found to have less than two-thirds (62%) of the accumulated wealth that their male counterparts enjoyed at retirement. For mid-level professional and technical roles, the gap was still substantial at 69%, but it narrowed considerably to 89% for frontline operational roles.