The study from RBC Wealth Management found a step change in the attitude of women between the boomer generation and millennials.
Half (49%) of boomer women said they took the lead on financial planning, but 72% of millennials said they took charge of this area of household affairs.
It was trend seen across legacy and will planning, charitable giving and day-to-day banking. In contrast, 69% of men of all ages said they were in charge of the financial planning.
The richer the household the more likely it is that the women are leading the financial planning and are involved in estate and legacy planning.
In the majority (69%) of households with $5m (£3.7m €4.3m) plus investible assets, woman said they were the decision-maker.
Impact and legacy
Other differences between the two generations is a shift away from thinking of money as providing security and toward factors like political impact and the impact on communities.
Millennial women are also more interested in objectively measuring the difference they can make.
A social focus is also a greater emphasis among women when it comes to establishing a legacy. Most (65%) millennial women said they believed they had a duty to use their wealth to benefit broader society, compared to 52% of boomer women.
In terms of beneficiaries, 41% of boomer women said they would give their wealth to their children compared to 15% of millennial women.
More millennials said they wanted their legacy to be different than their parents.
The RBC survey also found that wealthy millennial women are more likely to have built their wealth than their boomer counterparts.
