Good morning! The Trump administration wants to dismiss lawsuit restricting abortion pill access, the end of a tariff loophole could hurt UPS, and a new UBS report finds women are facing hurdles in the great wealth transfer.
– Talk it out. Women are set to receive tens of trillions of dollars in the great wealth transfer, the passing on of assets already in motion that could see as much as $105 trillion change hands over the next two decades. Not only will women inherit wealth from their parents, but many will become the sole decision-makers for their household’s wealth after widowhood. Baby boomer women alone are set to receive almost $40 trillion from partners in the coming years, according to UBS.
And while there’s been a growing awareness of the great wealth transfer over the past few years, one under-discussed aspect of it is whether or not heirs, particularly women, are prepared—emotionally or logistically—for their inheritances.
To find out, UBS took a look at three groups of women: those who have already inherited from their parents, those who expect to inherit from their parents, and those who are widowed and expect to receive full control of their household’s wealth.
In a report out Wednesday, UBS researchers find that 80% of women who inherited from their parents and 83% of widows faced a “wealth transfer challenge,” whether that be not knowing how much they were to receive or not knowing if their parents or spouse had a will. Half experienced a surprise, like a bigger tax bill or familial tension.
UBS finds that many of these challenges could have been prevented had the parties involved communicated about their estate plans. Many don’t discuss finances with their parents, spouse, or other benefactor before it’s too late, leaving them without the information they need to manage their new wealth appropriately. That includes, at a basic level, being told they will inherit, but also things like what the accounts are and where they are located.
Carey Shuffman, head of women’s wealth at UBS, says one way to broach the topic with parents when money is not typically discussed is to do so through a conversation on vision and values. Future heirs can ask their parents what they want their legacy to be.
“These conversations alone can be incredibly valuable in starting the conversation,” she says. Then, it can be easier to transition into what Shuffman calls the fundamentals of the wealth transfer. “Focus more [on] what to do in the event of a death. For example, where their accounts are located and who their trusted advisors are.”
And though couples are expected to share financials with each other, that conversation can be just as difficult for countless reasons—no one wants to think about their partner’s death, but unfortunately, not doing so can make the aftermath that much more difficult to navigate.
“Women can emphasize that this ‘just in case’ discussion can benefit both spouses, giving them each peace of mind,” says Shuffman. “We all want to know that if something happens to us, the people we care about most will be okay.”
Estate planning is a topic I’ve been covering more regularly as our financial lives get more complex. Here are some resources if you’re working on your own plan:
—Why the first step in your estate planning process shouldn’t be crafting a will
—What single and child-free people need to know about estate planning
—Planning your estate? Decide who gets your passwords—and who will burn your journals
—Why inheritance should be a faucet—not a firehose, says a wealth manager
—If you inherit $1 million—or any amount—this is the first thing you should do, says financial planner
Alicia Adamczyk
alicia.adamczyk@fortune.com
The Most Powerful Women Daily newsletter is Fortune’s daily briefing for and about the women leading the business world. Today’s edition was curated by Nina Ajemian. Subscribe here.
ALSO IN THE HEADLINES
- Protect the pill. The Trump administration asked a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit that would restrict abortion pill access, making this the second time in recent months that the administration has defended the FDA’s regulation of mifepristone. The Trump White House, like Biden’s, says the states in this case don’t have standing to sue. Axios
- Next try. Weight Watchers filed for bankruptcy yesterday, with the goal of eliminating its massive debt load. Ex-CEO Sima Sistani had tried a turnaround plan for the legacy weight-loss business in the Ozempic era, but was forced out of the job after the strategy didn’t succeed fast enough. CNN
- Lost the loophole. President Donald Trump ended a loophole that let goods worth $800 or less enter the U.S. from China without tariffs—shipping companies like UPS, Fedex, and DHL could lose a large source of revenue as a result. China-to-U.S. is UPS’ most-profitable trade lane, and the company, with CEO Carol Tomé, expects that revenue to drop 25% in Q2 of this year. New York Times
- Top model. GenAI startup Recraft, founded and led by Anna Veronika Dorogush, raised $30 million in a Series B funding round led by Accel, with Khosla Ventures and Madrona joining. Last year, Recraft’s image generation model beat DALL-E, by OpenAI, and Midjourney on the Artificial Analysis benchmark, a well-respected, crowd-sourced ranking of AI models. TechCrunch
- Ownership stake. Mikaela Shiffrin, the most decorated Alpine skier in history, has joined the ownership group of Denver’s National Women’s Soccer League expansion team, which will launch in 2026. “[T]he growth of women’s sports is one of the most exciting movements in our culture today,” said the Olympic gold medalist and Colorado native. ESPN
MOVERS AND SHAKERS
Wikimedia Foundation CEO Maryana Iskander will be stepping down next year.
A. Smith & Co. Productions, a TV production company, named Jenny Daly president. Daly most recently served as president of Critical Content.
Women Back to Work named Tami Forman executive director. Forman is the founder and former CEO of Path Forward.
Bristol Myers Squibb (no. 98) appointed Cari Gallman as EVP, general counsel, and chief policy officer; she succeeds Sandra Leung, who is retiring after 33 years at the company. Gallman was most recently the pharmaceutical company’s EVP, corporate affairs.
Enterprise GenAI company Writer appointed Maureen Little as SVP of partnerships and ecosystem. Most recently, Little was VP of technology partnerships at Okta.
Cognizant (no. 213) named its interim CMO Thea Hayden CMO.
SharkNinja, a household appliance company, appointed Kleona Mack as chief marketing officer of Shark Beauty and Michelle Crossan-Matos as chief growth officer of SharkNinja. Most recently, Mack was CMO at Glossier and Crossan-Matos was CMO at Ulta Beauty.
ON MY RADAR
Demonized by Trump, DEI professionals go ‘discreet’ to find jobs Bloomberg
Brides settle for Costco flowers and American wine as tariffs rain on wedding season Wall Street Journal
Times have changed—but the Rockettes keep kicking NPR
PARTING WORDS
“I was like, ‘Hey, can we go away somewhere really cozy and cute for two days? I will supply so much wine, and can we just see if there’s anything? And if there isn’t, it’ll still be two days of womanhood.’”
— Country singer Kelsea Ballerini on how she wound up making her album Patterns with an all-female songwriting team
