U
h oh! Here comes that pesky diversity stuff again. Once again, here is an article wondering where are the female entrepreneurs and founders. We know things are changing, but are they really? One very BIG question needs to be answered. Is it just plain cultural? Here is a great article that lends a bit of insight and suggests some things that need to be done. And for an alternative viewpoint to this, see The Great “Sexism in FinTech” Debate and Where are the Women in Fintech?
Bill Taylor/CEO
"Fintech has become a major force since the financial crisis, with venture-backed fintech startups raising record funds and births of new fintech unicorns. However, according to KPMG, of the nearly 500 deals closed in the US in 2016, less than a dozen went to companies founded by women. Out of the billions of dollars that went into the sector, only a handful raised Series A or Series B funding, including Ellevest, Wise Banyan, PolicyGenius, ApplePie Capital, and SupportPay.The picture gets grimmer on both sides of the pond:
- Based on a survey of U.K.-based fintech firms published last week, women represented just 3 in 10 employees.
- According to the Financial Times, only 8% of the fintech board directors globally are women, compared to 22% in big banks.
- Per Catalyst.org only 5.4% of S&P 500 Finance and Insurance companies have women CEO.
- Only 10% of venture-backed companies had a female founder, as reported by the Case Foundation.
- The share of all new female entrepreneurs decreased from 1996 to 2016, according to the Kauffman Index of Startup Activity published by the Kauffman Foundation....
...I attended a week-long fintech event recently where one of the sessions was dedicated to presentations by various accelerators around the country and their startups. The lineup was as follows:
- Seven accelerators (introduced by 7 men)
- Fourteen startups (represented by 14 men)
In all, 21 guys came on stage, with no woman founder in sight.
Zero.
Which begged the question: Did any of the accelerators have female entrepreneurs? Were all of the female founders “coincidentally” occupied and not available for arguably one of the most well-known fintech conferences of the year?
While I was disappointed, I was not surprised. Truth is, this has been far too common in not only Silicon Valley, but tech industry in general. The only good thing is that there is never a line at the women’s bathroom at such events.There is always a silver lining I suppose.
.."Full Story thru link below at Irish Fintech News
http://irishtechnews.ie/where-did-all-the-female-founders-go/?utm_content=bufferb7952&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer