Investing in Women

Think gold is a good investment? Well, it probably is. But at one investment firm, they’re placing their bets on an even more valuable commodity.

The New York Times reports that Zurich’s Naissance Capital will launch a Women’s Leadership Fund in January. The fund will invest in companies with women on the board and will also take minority stakes in companies lacking female leadership in order to send a message.

So is this all just “activist” investing? Actually, research shows that European and U.S. businesses with the most women on the board tended to be more profitable than those with less. Especially following a market meltdown precipitated by excessive risk-taking, turning to companies with women at the helm makes sense. A University of Chicago study shows that in general, men tend to make riskier bets than women.

The saying goes there would be no wars if women were in charge. If Naissance is right, there will be no recessions, either.

Photo courtesy Stock Exchange.