Globally only 20% of startups have at least one female founder. Conscious efforts must be made by everyone to encourage women into this space, by providing equal opportunities, initiatives, and support. Having women founders should be the norm, not the exception to the rule.

Oana Botez, Community & Events Manager at Point Nine Capital

As VCs, we are in the privileged position of making investments that have a real impact on the world we live in. But I believe we can do more to find and invest in founders that reflect our diverse society. Addressing female under-representation not only makes business sense but will also enable the next generation of founders to see themselves in the tech leaders of today. Partnering with the 200bn Club can help us shape a new generation of female leaders.

Edel Coen, Head of deal flow at Molten Capital

Having previously ran my own community organisation focused on female founders and creatives, I’ve seen the possibilities for women when equipped with adequate resources. Similarly, the 200BN Club mentoring early-stage female-led teams is crucial as the journey becomes more difficult at growth stage. Their ‘no one left behind‘ motto is encouraging as it shows genuine interest in mobilising female founders in the Tech and VC industry.

Esther Akpovi, Venture Scout at Ada Ventures

There are plenty of high potential women out there with strong aspirations to become entrepreneurs, but some of them are lacking access to peers and mentors who can share their experiences, and learnings, and with whom these future entrepreneurs can share their hopes and fears. I'm a strong believer in the power of community - rising tides raise all ships - and initiatives such as the 200bn Club are great ways to give them a nudge to jump into the water.

Alison Imbert, Partner at Partech Partners

For so long, companies most likely to receive venture backing have been those with good connections in the industry, meaning many top founders and verticals have been overlooked. At Ascension, we screen over 3,000 companies a year and through our impact funds and novel initiatives, such as the Debut Sessions, we are presented with a much wider pool of potential deals. As an investor we feel responsible for expanding the entrepreneurship ecosystem in the UK and beyond. One's gender or race shouldn't impact the way in which investors assess founders in the investment process. We are excited to work together with 200Bn Club to support more female founders in accessing capital.

Iulia Tudor, Portfolio Manager at Ascension

At SuperSeed we are passionate about backing the very best entrepreneurs to create world-changing companies. We joined the £200Bn Club as a founding partner as part of our continued effort to make sure we can meet and invest in the UK’s best female entrepreneurs.

James Sore, Principal at SuperSeed

Fintechs with female founders represent ~15% of all fintechs funded in 2020, yet they received less than 8% of the nearly $17bn deployed in the space last year. This deserves serious attention if we want a diverse talent base building the future of financial services.

Jillian Cohn, Partner at Mouro Capital

At Frontline we strongly believe the best entrepreneurs should have an equal opportunity to receive funding regardless of their gender. Currently, the industry data would say that venture funding is very far from having equality or parity in how it is given out. So along with several other initiatives, Frontline is also very happy to support The200Bn Club.

William McQuillan, Partner at Frontline Ventures

A more diverse, equal, and inclusive startup ecosystem is not only important for funding and empowering more female founders, but for building a more sustainable economic and inclusive society as a whole. It will take a community of entrepreneurs, investors, and mentors, like the 200Bn Club, working together to make this mission a reality. I’m delighted to be a mentor promoting female founder potential and moving us one step closer to the positive change we need.

May Wang, Investment Associate at Fin VC

Since launching Female Founder Office Hours in 2019, we've seen the progression from 11 investors in attendance to 90 investors. The support we've received from the VC community has been overwhelming and is a ringing endorsement for the collective drive to rebalance gender inequality in our ecosystem. We hope opportunities such as Office Hours translate to increased investment in diverse founders which we are confident will in turn drive better returns and create a more inclusive environment for all.

Jeevan Sunner, VC Investor at Playfair Capital

At Prefcap we are excited to help turn the dial on overlooked founders by backing start-ups through the 200bn Club – a brilliant initiative to help founders get pitch-ready and in front of the venture investment community.

Jesse Heasman, VC Investor at Prefcap

We use data to remove bias from investing decisions and on this issue it is abundantly clear, startups with diverse founders and teams outperform those without.

Tom Britton, Co-founder at Syndikate Room

Women worldwide historically have been underpaid, undervalued, underfunded, under-represented, and underestimated… and still are. Statistics prove there is no better investment now than to #ChooseWOMEN! Wendy Diamond Founder/CEO LDP Ventures/Women’s Entrepreneurship Day Organization (WEDO)

Wendy Diamond, CEO at LDP Ventures

Not only do women receive less than 3% of venture dollars, but less than 13% of all investors at venture capital firms are women. We need to equalize the playing field by encouraging more women to become investors and to invest in companies that are led by women.

Elizabeth Davis, Principal at Anthemis