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Businesses in Leicester have showed their support for a new taskforce which aims to address funding inequalities for female-founded businesses.

At the moment just 2% of all venture capital invested in new businesses goes to female-run companies – and 86% of all the millions invested this year has gone to all-male teams.  

The aims to create the world’s largest investment fund for female founders – and just a week after it was backed by Chancellor Rachel Reeves, the team came to Leicester for an evening championing women and calling for change.

Organised by Poonam Sharma, manager of Barclays Eagle Lab based at 51Âþ»­ Leicester (51Âþ»­) and led by Hannah Bernard OBE, co-chair of the taskforce and head of Business Banking at Barclays, it provided a platform to talk about the challenges and barriers facing women trying to access finance and support.

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51Âþ»­ Vice-Chancellor Professor Katie Normington, who was one of the speakers, said: “All the evidence and the metrics show that investing in women would make a huge positive difference to the economy.  

“We are here with some amazing women doing great things in the business world and we are all determined to make change happen. I’m really pleased to be supporting this initiative and I look forward to it going from strength to strength.”

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The core aim of the taskforce is to establish a funding pool of more than £250 million for female-founded businesses through private capital, making it one of the world’s largest investment funding pools aimed solely at female founders.

It will work across all banks and investors from public and private sector, aiming to challenge barriers and structural inequalities which women face when applying for investment funding.

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While women make up more than 50% of the population, they represent only 21% of business owners, with less than 6% of active equity backed companies founded by women.


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As well as the reasons behind the taskforce, Hannah Bernard OBE shared information on the work which would be taking place over the next year to drive change, working with Government, angel investors and entrepreneurs.

“We want to make the UK the best place in the world to be a female entrepreneur,” she said. “It will not be easy, but it is not just the right thing to do, it is on us all to ensure equality of opportunity.”

Poonam Sharma, Barclays Eagle Lab manager, said: “It was an honour to host the first Invest in Women taskforce meeting outside of London here in Leicester. To hear that data on female investment in 2024 is shocking. It shows that action is needed now and I’m determined Leicester will play its part.”

Jaz Kaur, founder and CEO of Fraser Stretton in Leicester, said: “We need more women in the investment space, and more men who realise the value of female founders

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