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Breaking the gender gap in entrepreneurship

18 Nov 2021

Did you know that only 20% of people who decide to start their own business are women? The financial solution Qonto has recently assembled a group of entrepreneurs The goal of the conference was to provide a series of references to reflect on why this gender gap exists in the world of entrepreneurship and how organizations and professionals can contribute to reduce it. The talk, which took place on Wednesday, November 17 at Aticco Bogatell, featured speakers Silvia Escámez, Co-Founder and CEO of Finteca; Mireia Badia, CEO and Co-Founder of Grow.ly; Laura Gómez, CEO and Founder of Catevering; and Paloma Blázquez, Director of Marketing and Communication at Qonto Spain, as moderator.  Under the title, Entrepreneurship and Leadership - Women Edition, the entrepreneurs shared their vision and experience, as well as inspiring and commenting on the keys to contribute to female empowerment in the business world.  

More investment

  The figures speak for themselves. While, As Silvia Escámez explains, 60% of the startup workforce is made up of women; only 20% of the founders and leaders are women. There is a big difference and something that prevents or discourages women from becoming entrepreneurs. On the one hand, as the speakers commented, the investment of venture capital, business angels and venture capital is lower in projects led by women than in those led by men. This, in line with what Escámez argued, is surprising since, according to her, »the return is greater in the case of women».  In this sense, the CEO of Finteca, pointed out that perhaps the problem comes from the fact that women tend to keep a lower profile and be more cautious and this can lead us to »not end up selling our project well». It is precisely the characteristic of being more cautious that gives greater security or viability to women's projects, since they seek to ensure their idea before launching into entrepreneurship. Mireia Badia, CEO of Grow.ly, explained that she herself as an employer has realized that this not only happens in entrepreneurship but also at the team level: »The male entrepreneur knows how to sell better even with a worse product. Much of the work has to be done by oneself, many women tend to devalue us».   

Networks of women entrepreneurs

  In the session, the speakers pointed out failures and drawbacks while proposing ideas and solutions. So, in order to face the moment of presenting themselves to investors, the three entrepreneurs agreed on the importance of self-confidence and finding support. As Laura Gómez explained: "When I started out as an entrepreneur, I felt very lonely in front of investors and partners. Women's communities help a lot not only to obtain resources but also to feel accompanied". To encourage this collective support, there are different initiatives from networks of women entrepreneurs. In the Fintech and Insurtech sectors, for example, women entrepreneurs can find support in the Fintech Women Network created by the Spanish Fintech and InsurTech Association.    

Financing programs for women entrepreneurs

  In addition to support networks, there are also specific financing or acceleration programs for women entrepreneurs. One example is the Wayra Scale Up Womenprogram, which we have promoted this year at Aticco Ecosystem. Although specific programs for women, as is the case with quotas, are not without controversy, Badia reflected on the need for their existence: "Today, acceleration programs or specific financing for women are necessary because if we don't mobilize change, it doesn't happen, we have to encourage it". For the CEO of Catevering, one of the areas where there is still a long way to go is investment. Her personal experience is proof of this: "I have stood in front of investment funds and they only looked at my partner when I was answering questions.  However, as Escámez said, »female talent is impressive». So why don't we open the way for that talent? The values that the speakers wanted to transmit to the audience and to those women who want to embark on entrepreneurship were the following perseverance, balance and keeping an open mind to the changes to come. Laura, Silvia and Mireia are doing their bit for something very important to achieve equality: that there are more and more women in business. Qonto ES, for its part, with this type of event, helps the rest of the community to see the potential of female leadership.  

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