Giving Compass' Take:

• Bonnie Chiu writes that the number of women philanthropists is increasing and makes three predictions about the future of giving.

• Chiu reports that 84 percent of women are interested in "sustainable investing" compared to 67 percent of men.  What accounts for these differences? How will females change the landscape of philanthropic investing?

• Read about the differences between women and men when it comes to impact investing.

On the Forbes’ 2018 list of billionaires, women billionaires numbered at 256 out of total 2208 entries— an all-time high, with a collective worth to surpass $1 trillion. Yet, we should not gloss over the fact that wealth is still predominantly controlled by men, and that there are harsh realities around female investing.

Nonetheless, when women control more wealth, the face of philanthropy will also change. Some empirical studies suggest that women are more likely than men to engage in prosocial behaviour, defined as voluntary behaviour intended to benefit others — and this includes acts of helping and donating.

With the rise of female philanthropists, not only will there be more philanthropic dollars to spend, trends thus far show that they will be making three big bets.

First, that philanthropy ought to move from an ego-system to an ecosystem: We learn from management literature that women tend to be more cooperative in work teams, and the same seems to apply in philanthropy. Giving circles are a way of collaborative giving, and the first ones were created by women for women.

Second, that investing in women and girls yields one of the best social returns: There are no official statistics as to the percentage of female philanthropists that give to the cause of women and girls, but anecdotal evidence suggests that they are more likely to sympathise with the gender cause.

Third, that philanthropy is not separate from investments, and impact investing can enable philanthropists to amplify their impact: In a recent survey by Morgan Stanley, 84% of women said they were interested in “sustainable” investing, defined here as targeting not just financial returns but social or environmental goals.  The figure for men was 67%.

Read the full article about female philanthropists by Bonnie Chiu at Forbes Welcome.