In January 2026, female PensionBee customers out-contributed men for only the second time in the firm’s history, with women’s contributions reaching 104% of those made by their male counterparts. This surge was primarily driven by women in their 40s, who contributed 185% of what men in the same age bracket did, likely due to self-employed and freelance workers making lump-sum payments before the tax deadline. While these figures indicate growing financial engagement among middle-aged women and higher-rate taxpayers, younger and older age groups still lag behind men, reflecting a “compounding disadvantage” over time. Experts suggest that while these gains are encouraging, systemic reform is still necessary to support “invisible workers” who fall outside traditional auto-enrollment schemes.
Date: February 26, 2026. Source: independent.co.uk