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Don't get mad, get investing

Let’s close the gender investment gap.

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How much more do men invest than women and why?

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You might want to sit down.

The correct answer is
£567 billion
more, in the UK alone.

You read that right, their money’s working hard, yours could too

A third of women don’t feel confident managing their long-term finances. This must change or women risk not having enough money in later life. The investing gap is biggest between people aged 18 to 24. But why?

We want to provide a simple overview of investing, explaining the high-level concepts without all the jargon, to help you see if it’s right for you.

Source: Boring Money Online Investing Report 2024.

 

Women and investing - Jackie Leiper and Holly Mead Interview

 

Watch our 21-minute video to see what Holly Mead, presenter of The Times ‘Feel Better About Money’ podcast and Jackie Leiper, Managing Director, Pensions & Investments, have to say about women and investing.

Investing: A chance to multiply your money

You’re probably familiar with saving - putting cash into a savings account is certainly a good thing, but isn’t always the top choice if you’re looking to help that cash grow.

Investing, in contrast, comes with more risk but also with more potential to act as a money multiplier. Those in the industry call this ‘return’.

Let's look at an example...

If you had invested £1,000 in the S&P World Index in 2015, it would have been worth £2,659 in January 2025. Whereas £1,000 kept in a typical savings account would have been worth £1,229.

Source: (Savings) MoneyFacts, 12m Fixed Non ISA rates, January 2025. (Investments) S&P Dow Jones Indices, S&P World Index (GBP). Excludes fees and does not include any dividends or reinvestment. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. See a breakdown of these figures.

 

What is investing?

Very simply, investing means buying things that could go up in value over time. In the investing world, these things are called ‘assets.’ Assets can take many forms – you may’ve heard about ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds), funds, stocks, shares, bonds and gilts – even gold. There are lots of different options and you can explore what they are here.

The value of your investment depends on the price of the asset you've invested in. An increase in the asset price raises the value of your investment and gives you more money. A decrease in the asset price lowers the value of your investment and results in less money. Asset prices often fluctuate from day to day. This fluctuation is called volatility. Over time, this effect levels out and shows a more consistent trend.

Beginners' guide to investing

A risk that’s right for you

Investing might help your money grow, but, no one can predict exactly how things will turn out. This uncertainty means your investment's value might decrease and you could lose some money. 

The level of risk you take is up to you and there are also lots of ways to help mitigate risk so that you feel more comfortable.

Take a long-term view

The first thing you can do is plan to keep your money invested for five years or more. This doesn’t mean you can’t get hold of it during that time – you can. But by planning to leave it five years or more, you’re much more likely to ride any short-term movements in the asset price.

See why a longer-term view can help in our ‘timing the market versus time in the market’ video.

Understanding investing

Spread out the risk

Another important concept in investing is the idea of spreading out your money so you’re not ever too exposed to any one single thing. It’s called ‘diversification’. If one investment isn’t performing well, a mixture of assets helps to balance things out because you might have some assets that might be doing better than others at different times.

You can read more about how this helps you to be a resilient investor.

Resilient investing

Work out when you’ll need it

It helps to think about what you’re investing for and when you’ll need the money. The further you are from your goal, the more risk you might consider taking. This is especially true if your goal is for later in life. There are many different investment options, and they all have different levels of risk associated with them. You can read more about risk.

Understanding risk

Remember that the value of investments and the income from them can fall as well as rise, and you may get back less than you invest. If you’re not sure about investing, seek financial advice. There will normally be a charge for that advice. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and may be subject to change in the future.

 

It can pay to start young

Time is your friend when it comes to investing. It helps you ride the market ups and downs, and the longer you leave your money invested, the more opportunity it has to grow. You also don’t need a lump sum, investing small amounts regularly can be a great way to get started. You can plan when you’ll need your money and then ‘set and forget’ your investments.

Try our investment needs finder to see what could happen to your money when you invest it for different lengths of time. Remember, all calculations are based on what’s happened in the past and are not a guide to the future.

Investment needs finder

I’m interested – what now?

The next step is to decide whether you’d rather leave the investment decisions to the experts or pick the investments yourself. Either way, we can help...

We’ve got two account options designed to help you invest in the way that best suits you.

Let our experts pick

If you’re not confident in choosing your own investment and you’d prefer a bit of expert help from a brand you can trust, our Ready-Made Investment accounts are designed for people like you. All you need to do is select from one of three levels of risk and experts will take care of the rest.

62% of our investment customers aged 18 to 30 went for this

Ready-Made Investments

Pick yourself

If you feel excited about making investment decisions yourself, you're better suited to our Share Dealing ISA or account (or Invest Wise accounts for 18 to 25 year olds).

With this, you can either pick out individual shares by name or consider investing in ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds) as well as a range of other investments.

38% of our investment customers aged 18 to 30 chose to pick their own

Pick your own

Let our experts pick

If you’re not confident in choosing your own investment and you’d prefer a bit of expert help from a brand you can trust, our Ready-Made Investment accounts are designed for people like you. All you need to do is select from one of three levels of risk and experts will take care of the rest.

Ready-Made Investments

Pick yourself

If you feel excited about making investment decisions yourself, you're better suited to our Share Dealing ISA or account (or Invest Wise accounts for 18 to 25 year olds).

With this, you can either pick out individual shares by name or consider investing in ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds) as well as a range of other investments.

Pick your own

Jargon alert

We know that investing can involve a lot of jargon. You might hear terms like "Exchange Traded Funds" or ETFs. Don't worry - it's not as intimidating as it seems.

ETFs make things easy if you choose to pick your own. They provide immediate access to a diversified investment portfolio. This portfolio tracks an index. This index is based on places, such as the US and India. It can also focus on an investment theme, like Clean Energy. This means you can customise your investments to match your interests.

Find out more about how they work and what they offer with our ETF Quicklist.

ETF Quicklist

Remember your ISA

If you’re ready to start, remember your ISA allowance is £20,000. You can use it for investments or savings. This allowance resets each year. By opening your investment account as an ISA, you can enjoy tax benefits. The growth is free from UK income tax and Capital Gains Tax. This makes it a tax-efficient way to grow your money.

If you then want to invest more than £20,000 in the same tax year, you can open a separate investment account. Both our Ready-Made Investment and Share Dealing (or Invest Wise) accounts are available as ISAs. Tax rules apply.

Find out more about ISAs

Want to know more?

Hear from others who have already started their investing journeys, with our stories from Jess and Vanessa.

We’ve plenty of content to help you explore which option is right for you, as well as help boost your understanding and skills.

Boost your skills

Meet Jess

A journey from savings to stocks.

“I've had a managed account before, so it was a good start to get that knowledge first. But now I feel more confident to pick my own. And thankfully, there’s a massive list of stocks to choose from on the Lloyds app…”

Read Jess' story

Meet Vanessa

Investing to overcome a difficult situation.

“I was afraid of putting my money away for too long, so I used to talk myself out of investing. But when I finally started, I realised it’s a long game that’s worth it in the end…”

Read Vanessa’s story

You may also like

What is an ETF?

Learn about ETFs and how they can help you start investing today.

ETF Academy

Select List

Unlock the right funds for your portfolio with our expert-curated shortlist from FE Fundinfo.

Select List

Do your research

Find your next investment and catch up with market news or investment ideas.

Find your next investment

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Your money is protected

Investments totalling up to £85,000 are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. This limit applies to the combined total of stocks or cash holdings in these brands that we administer.

This is in addition to any savings you hold across Lloyds Banking Group.

Important legal information

The Lloyds Bank Direct Investments Service is operated by Halifax Share Dealing Limited. Registered Office: Trinity Road, Halifax, West Yorkshire, HX1 2RG. Registered in England and Wales no. 3195646. Halifax Share Dealing Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority under registration number 183332. A Member of the London Stock Exchange and an HM Revenue & Customs Approved ISA Manager.

Important share dealing information