As a woman rushes past the New York Stock Exchange on Wall Street, the shift towards the “husband at home, wife at work” trend is subtly gaining traction across the United States. Many successful women dominating Wall Street have a supportive partner at home, fulfilling the role of a “househusband” and managing household chores to allow their wives to focus on career advancement.

Suzanne Donohoe, a senior executive at private equity firm EQT, recently returned from a 10-day business trip to Asia and Europe. While she was abroad, her husband, Matt Donohoe, took on the responsibility of caring for their three teenage children, helping with homework, grocery shopping, and cooking. Despite their similar ages, the children attend different schools and participate in various extracurricular activities. Matt even drove their 13-year-old son to hockey practice in New Jersey before taking all three kids to a tournament in Boston.

With degrees from Georgetown University and Columbia University, Matt previously worked as an emerging markets trader. In 2007, he made the decision to leave his job and become a househusband, shouldering household responsibilities so that Suzanne could pursue better promotions and higher salaries.

Historically, Wall Street has struggled to promote and retain female talent, largely due to long hours, frequent travel, and a highly competitive environment that can be especially daunting for working mothers. Even for women in high-level positions, striking a balance between work and family life remains a challenge, despite the support from their husbands.

Societal perceptions of househusbands often come with bias, as many believe husbands should earn more than their wives while household tasks are traditionally expected to fall to women. However, this trend is beginning to change.

A 2023 report from the Pew Research Center reveals that in heterosexual marriages in the U.S., 45% of wives earn as much or more than their husbands, a figure that has tripled over the past 50 years. The same research indicates that in 2021, 18% of fathers were househusbands, up from just 11% in 1989.

Notably, Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and her husband Doug Emhoff both stepped away from their established legal careers when she became vice president. Additionally, the husbands of prominent female executives from Citigroup, TIAA Bank, and Blackstone’s real estate division are also embracing the role of househusbands.