Scores of lenders and investors have added their names to a Government initiative to help female entrepreneurs access business finance.
The Investing in Women Code is designed to support the advancement of women business people in the UK by improving access to the tools and resources they need.
Who is involved with the investment?
It is an initiative recommended by the Government-commissioned Rose Review, led by NatWest CEO Alison Rose, into how best to boost female entrepreneurship.
The report, published this week, shows a number of angel investment groups, venture capitalists and banks, showing a strong level of investment in women entrepreneurs and a commitment to improving access to financial support.
Key findings in the report show:
- A significant increase to 160 in the number of venture and growth capital firms signing up, accounting for 34 of the 53 new signatories in the year to 31 March 2022.
- In 2021, 34 per cent of deals made by code signatories were in companies with at least one female founder, compared to an industry average of 24 per cent.
- In the same year, the average amount of Angel (early-stage) investment being sought by all-female teams (£791,000) was very similar to all-male teams (£823,000). That figure was less than 50 per cent in the same year and signifies a sharp shift.
Is the code expanding?
The code is also gaining recognition worldwide with a partnership of 14 countries.
These include Australia, Canada and China, the World Bank and six regional development banks planning to draw on the UK’s experience to create a ‘Women Entrepreneurs Finance Code’ to help the 400 million businesses owned by women around the world.
Three priorities for the future have been agreed upon by the Government and the Investing in Women Code Partners and include:
- Expanding information to further increase the number of code signatories.
- Hosting forums to share best practices and engage with women-led businesses and showcase support delivered by investors.
- Collating data to further improve understanding of the finance market more widely and the challenges faced by women-led businesses.
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