Progress being made for women in fintech
There are positive signs of progress for women in fintech, but barriers still remain, new research has found.
A report co-authored by Innovate Finance and EY has found that over three-quarters (76 per cent) of women believe their fintech company is inclusive, and over half (56 per cent) feel it is diverse.
The report, based on online interviews and focus groups with men and women from across the UK fintech sector, found that there is progress being made in diversity, equality and inclusion.
The majority (94 per cent) of junior to mid-level fintech employees are able to express their views and suggestions at work, and 89 per cent said they are motivated to do their job. Meanwhile, 78 per cent claimed they feel able to be authentic at work.
The majority also feel they are treated with dignity and respect by their team, regardless whether are in a start-up (86 per cent) or a scale-up (97 per cent), and 78 per cent said they feel valued for their work.
However, barriers still exist that need to be addressed.
Fewer than half (45 per cent) of the female fintech founders surveyed said that they feel able to raise equity capital, compared to 62 per cent of men. And less than a third (31 per cent) of women feel able to access debt funding, compared to 44 per cent of men.
Among junior to mid-level employees, 63 per cent of females at fintech firms believe their gender has impacted how they are perceived professionally, compared to just 27 per cent of men. 80 per cent of women feel their ideas are acted upon, compared to 94 per cent of men.
More men than women (42 per cent compared to 32 per cent) said they have negotiated on compensation, and 69 per cent of men received all or nearly all of what they asked for, while only 51 per cent of women did.
EY and Innovate Finance said better support is needed for female founders as they grow their businesses, requiring co-ordination with the investment industry to help remove gender barriers around critical funding.
They recommended the creation of more inclusive working environments and a focus on reducing gender disparity attained through targeted recruitment.
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“The UK boasts a world-leading fintech sector that is seen by peers as the global benchmark for innovation and transformation in financial services,” said Janine Hirt, chief executive at Innovate Finance.
“It is therefore vital to ensure that we are also setting the global standards when it comes to diversity and inclusion. It’s clear there is still a long way to go in ensuring everyone can succeed within the sector, including supporting underrepresented founders in accessing increased capital and investment.
“We – industry, government and regulators – must all work together to make the industry more inclusive. Fintechs in particular have the opportunity to shift the demographic of talent within financial services.”
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“Gender imbalances are not new issues within business, but as a relatively young industry that boasts a heavily millennial workforce, the fintech sector sits in an interesting space on this topic,” added Anita Kimber, EMEIA business transformation leader at EY.
“There is a real opportunity for the fintech sector to lead the way in driving greater gender equality and we hope the recommendations outlined in this report will help power material change.”