Indian women save more, but are still missing out on wealth. Here's why

New Delhi: Women in India have traditionally been the backbone of household savings, but the next phase of financial empowerment will depend on how effectively they build long-term wealth through investments rather than relying only on saving, says Anooshka Soham Bathwal, founder and CEO of Dhanvesttor.

She said women are earning more, inheriting assets, running businesses and playing a larger role in family financial decisions than ever before. However, she argued that their participation in long-term wealth creation through investments, equity ownership and portfolio building has not increased at the same pace.

She said that India's retail investing boom, which is driven by rising mutual fund participation and digital investing platforms, has opened up financial markets to a much larger audience. Despite this, women continue to be one of the country's largest untapped investor groups.

According to Bathwal, the country's next phase of women's financial empowerment "will be defined not by how much women save, but by how effectively that capital is invested and compounded".

Explaining the difference between saving and investing, she said, "A savings plan focuses on setting money aside. A wealth strategy focuses on putting money to work."

While the distinction may appear small, she said it can have a major impact on financial outcomes over time.

Bathwal said long-term investing is especially important for women because they generally live longer than men and need their retirement savings to last for more years. At the same time, inflation continues to increase the cost of healthcare, education, housing and everyday expenses.

Traditional saving instruments play an important role in financial security, but relying solely on them, according to her, may not be enough to meet future financial needs.

"The biggest financial risk many women are facing today is not market volatility; it is the opportunity cost of staying out of wealth-creating assets for too long," she said.

Referring to data from the National Centre for Financial Education (NCFE), Bathwal said only 21 per cent of Indian women are considered financially literate, compared with 27 per cent of men. However, she argued that the issue goes beyond financial literacy.

According to her, women make complex financial decisions in households and businesses. The larger challenge is their lower participation in long-term investing, often because of their "limited confidence", access and ownership over investment decisions.

"The issue, therefore, is not simply a literacy gap; it is a participation gap," Bathwal argued.

She said encouraging more women to invest would require creating environments where they can freely ask questions, understand investment risks in practical terms and build the confidence needed for long-term decision-making.

Bathwal also explained the building blocks of a wealth strategy. She said it begins with clearly defined financial goals and timelines, followed by appropriate asset allocation that balances growth, stability and liquidity according to an individual's life stage and risk appetite.

Behavioural discipline, she added, is equally important because successful investing depends more on consistency through market cycles than on predicting market movements.

She said making a wealth strategy begins with three basic questions, "What am I investing for? When will I need this money? How much risk can I realistically afford to take?"

According to her, "The answers often matter more than the product itself."

Bathwal said the timing is particularly important because more women join the workforce, start businesses, inherit family assets and take greater responsibility for financial decisions.

Referring to the expected intergenerational transfer of wealth in India, she said women would increasingly become not only beneficiaries but also custodians of wealth.

She argued that this change calls for a mindset that looks beyond preserving money and prioritises long-term growth.

Calling for a broader conversation on women's financial empowerment, Bathwal said, "Saving creates stability; investing creates opportunity."

She added that every woman who earns or manages or inherits money should ask, "Is this money working as hard as I am?"

"A savings habit builds security. A wealth strategy builds freedom," she said and summed up her arguments by adding that India's next milestone should be meaningful participation of women in wealth creation rather than mere financial inclusion.