The government has today published it’s Investing in Women Code annual report. The code, which now has 250 signatories, is designed to address the lack of investment in female entrepreneurs from all corners of the financial services and investment landscape.
Investing in Women Code accounts for 40% of UK Business Angels Association angel investment groups and 47% of venture capital deals.
Signatories to the Code commit to collecting data and adopting internal practices that aim to improve women entrepreneurs’ access to finance. The 2023 data for the fourth year in a row showed a consistent link between key indicators, such as the importance of a diverse investment committee, warm introductions and women investing in women.
Key highlights from the report include:
Angel groups with more than 15% women investors made 57% of their investments in teams with women founders
There is an increasing number of female angel investors in the UK. With three angel signatories consisting entirely of women angel investors, triple the number of last year’s cohort.
32% of all venture capital deals made by Investing in Women Code signatories were in female-founded companies last year, compared to the market average of 28%.
There has been a rise in the number of pitch decks and funding requested to angel groups from all-female teams.
The market share of signatories’ deals continues to rise for the third year in a row, as the number of signatories increases.
The 30 new venture capital signatories reporting for the first time in 2023 invest a higher share of deals to teams with at least one female founder compared to all signatories and the wider market, with 42% of deals going to teams with at least one female founder compared to 28% in the wider market.
Diversity within signatories’ investment committees improves outcomes for teams with at least one female founder.
There is an increasing number of female angel investors in the UK. With three angel signatories consisting entirely of women angel investors, triple the number of last year’s cohort.
However, the report highlighted disparities, with the average amount of angel investment in all-female teams 50% lower than the amount invested in mixed gender teams and all male teams.
Anglia Capital Group are proud to be signatories of the Investing in Women Code. The results show that putting a focus on investing in women has a real effect on outcomes. It is particularly encouraging to see that angel groups with more than 15% women investors made 57% of their investments into teams with women founders. We know there is still work to do and this is why ACG is running a series of events for female founders and investors and why we continue to support the Investing in Women Code.
Hannah Brynn, Managing Director, Anglia Capital Group
The Investing in Women Code was founded in 2019 as a landmark government-led initiative in response to the Rose Review’s findings that a lack of funding was one of the most significant barriers to women seeking to effectively scale a business. Investing in Women Code Partners include the British Business Bank, British Private Equity & Venture Capital Association (BVCA), UK Business Angels Association (UKBAA), UK Finance, and Responsible Finance. Code Partners are responsible for managing data collection and reporting, on behalf of government.
Over 250 organisations have now signed up to the Code, showing the growing numbers of lenders and investors committed to increasing the levels of finance directed towards women-led businesses. Today’s report shows that IWC signatories are leading the way in addressing the finance gap between male and female entrepreneurs. Equal access to finance will boost the potential of female founded businesses and deliver on this Government’s priority to grow the economy.
The findings demonstrate that although Code signatories are leading the way, there is still much work to be done to close the gender investment gap, with considerable strains on the market having the highest impact on all female founding teams.
Code Partners are optimistic that expanding the Investing in Women Code to recruit more Limited Partners and CDFIs will have substantial impact across the finance ecosystem.
Increased engagement with signatories will provide support to those who are still at the beginning of their journey, and recognise those who already lead the way. In partnership with the Invest in Women Taskforce, the Code will work unitedly towards its mission to ensure talented and ambitious women entrepreneurs can access the finance they need to thrive.
With an increasing number of our Angel groups signing up to the Code, including a growing number of groups with a strong proportion of women angels, we can see the impact on women founders seeking and finding angel investment across the UK. Signatories are attracting increased level of women founders into their pipeline, whilst, for the first time, deals in women founders have surpassed the number of deals in male founders accessing investment, achieving over half the deals and share of investment from the Angel group signatories.
The results from signing the code are clear to see, but we have much more to do to enable all women teams to access their full share of investment. We will be working to ensure that many more of our Angel groups identify the benefits of being part of the Investing in Women Code community in the year ahead
Jenny Tooth, OBE, Executive Chair of the UK Business Angels Association.
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