On 10th July at the House of Commons, the Investing in Women Code launched its annual report where key findings highlight the strides made by the initiative. Up from 12 founding signatories when it was launched in 2019, the Investing in Women Code (IWC) represents an increasingly powerful ambition to back the UK’s women-led businesses.
Last year, the total value of equity deals made by IWC signatories to all-female founder teams was more than double the rate of the wider market.
What is the Investing in Women Code?
Founded in 2019, it is a landmark government-led initiative where signatories commit to improving access to finance and support for women-led businesses. It was established as a recommendation of the Rose Review.
38% of Community Development Finance Institutions (CDFI) business loans went to women-led businesses in 2024.
For the first time, 52% of investments made by angel signatory groups were in all-female or mixed gender founding teams.
This report demonstrates that IWC members are leading the way to address the finance gap between male and female entrepreneurs.
Speakers at the launch included
- the Minister for Equalities, Seema Malhotra
- Hannah Bernard, the Invest in Women Taskforce co-Chair, and Head of Business Banking at Barclays
- the Investing in Women Code Partners
- Stephen Welton, non-executive Chair of the British Business Bank, and Louis Taylor, Chief Executive of the British Business Bank
- the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves
Each of the Code Partners were given the spotlight to present this year’s findings, followed by an audience Q&A. Other kind findings from this year’s report show that:
£500m announced to back underrepresented entrepreneurs and women-led businesses
At the launch, the Chancellor announced the BBB’s new £400m Investor Pathways Capital initiative alongside £100m to be invested in women-led businesses. Read in full here.
- Loan approval rates show similar levels of success for women-led businesses compared with their male counterparts
- Angel groups are becoming more diverse, with 25% of 3,895 IWC investors being women, up from 20% in 2023, and 15% in 2022
- Code signatories that consistently report data outperform all other equity signatories and the wider market, at 36% for share of deals from consistent signatories and 27% for the wider market
- Women make up 41% of CDFIs senior management teams and 32% of their boards
- 81% of deals to teams with a women present were made from Angel groups where more than 15% were women investors
- New signatories include Pantheon, the first Limited Partner signatory since IWCs expansion in 2024; Atlantic Bridge, with over €1 billion in assets under management; Arāya Ventures, who are training over 250 women across the world to become first-time investors; and the Scottish National Investment Bank, providing crucial capital for businesses throughout Scotland.
The findings demonstrate the clear and continued commitment of IWC signatories despite a challenging economic landscape. However much more work is required to bridge the gap.
Signatories are taking actions from establishing dedicated programmes to support women entrepreneurs, establishing regional growth boards across the UK, running accelerators and outperforming the market in their support for innovative women-led businesses.
Individual success stories are not enough. We need to tackle the barriers facing women entrepreneurs across the board. Women-led teams receive just a fraction of investment, but the Investing in Women Code and its signatories gives us a way to change that.
Minister for Investment, Baroness Poppy Gustafsson
Together we can demonstrate what is possible when a group of changemakers come together. The strength of our signatories, and our network across the world, is essential to shifting the dial for female entrepreneurs here and everywhere.
In partnership with the Invest in Women Taskforce (IWT), the IWC will work together with its signatories to drive change and shape its future impact.
It’s heartening to see that once again IWC signatories are recognising the value of backing women-led businesses in the UK and are outperforming the broader market – proving that more diverse decision-making teams deliver better outcomes. We’re seeing real momentum in the number of women now shaping investment decisions, and the data shows this is directly linked to greater backing for female entrepreneurs. This is a core principle of the Invest in Women Taskforce – when you change who holds the capital, you change who gets funded.
Hannah Bernard OBE, Head of Business Banking, Barclays, and co-Chair of the Invest in Women Taskforce
The Investing in Women Code plays a vital role in helping us track progress and drive meaningful change across the wider industry. We encourage more LPs to sign up and unlock the proven value of women-led businesses by helping them secure equal access to funding. The Invest in Women Taskforce looks forward to deepening its partnership with the IWC to accelerate momentum and unlock the full potential of female entrepreneurs across the UK.
“UK Finance is proud to continue being a delivery partner of the Investing in Women Code. Our member signatories are committed to enabling better support for female-founded businesses, through targeted funds, mentoring schemes, peer networking, and business support and advice. We will continue working alongside government, businesses, and lenders to help ensure that female entrepreneurs can succeed.”
David Raw, Managing Director, Commercial Finance, UK Finance
This year’s report highlights encouraging progress, with Investing in Women Code signatories continuing to back female founders at levels above the wider market. Sustaining this momentum is essential as the data also underscores how far we still have to go.”
Michael Moore, Chief Executive, BVCA
“As the BVCA deepens its role as a Code partner, including leading data collection for Limited Partners, we recognise the crucial influence LPs have in advancing equity across the investment landscape.
