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Only 10% of venture capital is managed by women, which translates into 3% of VC funds going to female led startups. This gender imbalance in funding contributes to a significant underrepresentation of diverse perspectives in decision-making. As a result, critical sectors such as healthcare, safety, and climate innovation often face underinvestment. Without a more inclusive approach, many groundbreaking ideas and solutions are left unexplored or underfunded. Greater diversity in venture capital could unlock new opportunities and drive more equitable innovation across industries.
28th April 2021
Kinga Stanisławska, Managing Partner & Founder of Experior Venture Fund & co-founder of European Women in VC and Laura González-Estéfani, Founder & CEO of The Venture City, and member of European Women in VC met with Maria Gabriel, the Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth. The meeting was the first of a newly established working group, led by Commissioner Gabriel, that brought together 23 senior professionals and representatives from the EU Member States to work towards a more inclusive and gender-balanced innovation ecosystem, where creativity and diversity flourish.
Commissioner Maria Gabriel said:
“We need women’s creativity and entrepreneurial potential to create jobs and growth. If we want more women innovators in Europe, we need to invest more and provide them with the right education and support early on.”
Relevant links:
ec.europa.eu | Daily News 28/04/2021
pubaffairsbruxelles.eu | Commissioner Gabriel meets European Women in Venture Capital
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The Formation of the Working Group
The working group featured 23 senior professionals: Kinga Stanisławska, Managing Partner & Founder at Experior Venture Fund, Founder at European Women in VC, Laura González-Estéfani, Founder & CEO of The Venture City, Inka Mero, Founder & Managing Partner at Voima Ventures, Léonie Weerakoon, Managing Director at Kinetik Ventures, Tatjana Zabasu Mikuž, Managing Partner at South Central Ventures, Emilia Mamajova, Founding Partner ESPIRA Investments, Gerda Larsson, CEO at Curitas Ventures, Alice Albizzati, Founding Partner at Revaia, Almudena Trigo Lorenzo, Founding Partner & Chairwoman at BeAble Capital, Anna Wnuk, Head of Community at European Women in VC, Managing Director at the Polish Private Equity & Venture Capital Association, Kasia Piasecki, founder of ENNBOW, co-creator of Perspektywy Women in Tech Summit, Diana Saraceni, Founder and Managing Partner at Panakès Partners, Elaine Coughlan, Managing Partner and Co-Founder at Atlantic Bridge, Elina Halatcheva, Managing Partner at BrightCap Ventures, Heidi Kakko, Janneke Niessen, Co-Founder at CapitalT, Jeannette zu Fürstenberg, Founding Partner at La Famiglia VC, Marie-Helene Amestsreiter, General Partner at Speedinvest, Myrto Papathanou, Partner at Metavallon, Rafaèle Tordjman, Simone Brummelhuis, Founding & Managing Partner at Borski Fund, Thea Messel, Founder & Managing Partner at Unconventional Ventures, Veronika Pistyur, General Partner at Oktagon Ventures, established with a clear mission, developed a white paper petition and invited other investors and stakeholders to sign it.
A Petition Signed by Over 1,500 Investors
This petition received widespread support, with over 1,500 investors lending their signatures in favor of the proposed reforms and recommendations. The collective voice of these investors further underscored the need for change and highlighted the strong interest in fostering a better, more inclusive environment.
Official Handover Ceremony
The culmination of months of intense work came during the official handover ceremony of "a comprehensive report developed by General Partners of Venture Capital Funds on the state of Venture Capital funding with a set of initiatives to ensure equal access to capital for European female-led Venture Capital funds”, during which the Commissioner received the proposal from the group, which aimed to:
- emphasize the importance of pushing the industry as well as investors up to invest up to 30% of the all available capital in women-led funds,
- stimulate the drive for more inclusion and diversity in portfolio companies; encourage female-founded VC firms to invest more in female-led companies;
- highlight the initiative of establishing a Fund of Funds investing in women-led funds.
Relevant links:
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Following the White Paper
The group behind has proposed a number of measures to be taken toward this end, including the establishment of a European Fund of Funds of €3 billion to “anchor female-led VCs and growth funds by contributing up to 50% of the capitalization of those funds, up to a maximum commitment size of €100 million per fund.”
They also called for developing a tracking platform to make sure female-founded companies are being supported, providing grants or loans to address the lack of capital upfront to fund the general partner contribution, setting up relationship-building events for women-led VC firms and limited partners, and financial incentives to encourage investment in women-led funds.
On 3 June the EIC Board issued a statement on Gender and Diversity recommended that the that the funds of funds prioritise backing venture funds with diverse management teams, including female led venture funds, across Europe and begin to implement concrete strategies to change the status quo quickly, including within their management teams. A system wide transformative change is needed which should involve the EIF, the EIB and other major funds of funds.
Over time, EIF launched the Gender Smart Equity Investment Programme to boost gender diversity in VC and private equity. Collaborating with national and regional entities, it empowers women leaders by funding female-led managers and aligning with EIF's thematic policies. The Empowering Equity initiative ensures 25% of equity transactions meet InvestEU gender criteria, highlighting EIF's commitment to gender equality in European investments.
The collaboration is an inspiring example of how collective efforts can make a real difference. By engaging investors and stakeholders in the process, the working group has set the stage for further improvements in the way both public and private markets operate.
Ongoing mission
Since then, the European Women in VC community has continued to grow, with the mission carried forward by Kinga Stanisławska at its core, Kasia Piasecki as Managing Director, and the support of the entire team. EWVC organized 80 "meet the LP calls" and numerous in person meetings to catalyse more capital into female (co-)led funds and led this dialogue across the stages of major European tech conferences and all relevant stakeholder boardrooms.
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