Why TikTok star Tori Dunlap wants more women talking about money

All of this while amassing 2.2 million followers on TikTok where she shares her personal finance takes and advice.

She says it’s been important for her to develop her own financial literacy, and educate other women as well.

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Women need to talk about money

A new Fidelity study found that 55% of women prefer to learn about money from other women — with 66% of Gen Z and millennials making up that share.

“I think the whole ‘it's impolite to talk about money’ thought process is dying,” Tori Dunlap told Moneywise in an email.

“I think women are realizing that was only meant to keep them in the dark and therefore limit their ability to grow wealth.”

Finance has long been an ‘old boys’ club’

Women have long been at a disadvantage when it comes to wealth-building, whether it’s due to the gender pay gap or the demographics of the finance industry.

Annamaria Lusardi, professor of economics and accountancy at the George Washington University School of Business (GWSB), says older women may have grown up in an environment where they couldn’t or didn’t need to make as many financial decisions. This is something that’s changing with younger generations.

“Things are getting better,” says Lusardi. “But in my view, we need to do more.”

While talking about money has long been considered vulgar, even as the topic becomes more socially acceptable, there remains a gender gap.

Sonia Kang — Canada Research Chair in Identity, Diversity and Inclusion and associate professor of organizational behavior and human resource management at the University of Toronto — points to the existence of “crypto bros” and the male-dominated GameStop Reddit forums.

There are large online communities of men who like to talk about investing. But just because women aren’t making their voices heard doesn’t mean they’re less interested, Kang says.

She thinks they may simply be less willing to discuss it in public spaces.

Dunlap agrees.

“Finance bros playing gatekeepers, and in a much broader sense, the patriarchy as a whole prioritizes the voices of old, white men over almost anyone else.”

Women want to support women with their finances

Dunlap says she’s always felt comfortable talking about money and her parents imparted some important financial lessons to her from a young age. “I was always the friend who my friends came to for money advice.”

That said, women have historically faced greater barriers to financial education than men, and this is even more prevalent in low-income households.

Financial literacy that starts at school could be “a very important equalizer,” says Lusardi.

In Lusardi’s course on personal finance, she prepares her female students for the fact that if they start with a salary that’s 20% less than their male colleagues, they’re likely going to end up with $1 million less over their lifetime.

While the Fidelity report found that women were less likely to have financial conversations with their parents when they were children, compared to men — women are becoming increasingly more comfortable with having conversations around money.

And they’re more likely to support each other. About 80% of Gen Z and and 72% of millennials have made moves to help other women with their finances or career, whether that’s entailed recommending them for a job, sharing advice or talking pay.

Talking more about money can help close the gender wealth gap

Kang says talking openly about money can help “demystify” finance. She points out that many advances in gender pay equity have been due to transparency.