Key Takeaways
- • In 2024, start-ups founded by women received just 2.3 per cent of global venture-capital funding, compared with more than 83 per cent for all-male founding teams, according to the article.
- • Women make up only about 15 per cent of venture capitalists, and an often-cited Harvard University study found that 70 per cent of VCs preferred the men's pitch when male and female founders presented identical pitches.
- • Access to networks is as critical as capital: HSBC Private Bank research shows female business owners are six percentage points less likely to have a mentor providing business advice.
- • UBS research cited in the article found women generate 78 cents per dollar invested versus 31 cents for men, and closing the entrepreneurship gap could add US$2.5 trillion to US$5 trillion to global GDP.
- • McKinsey & Co. projects women will control about 40-45 per cent of wealth, or around US$113 trillion, by 2030, creating an opening for women to become capital allocators.
Summary
Women entrepreneurs continue to face a substantial funding gap across venture capital, private equity and bank lending. According to the South China Morning Post, start-ups founded by women received just 2.3 per cent of global venture-capital funding in 2024, compared with more than 83 per cent for all-male founding teams. The article frames this gap as a constraint on who builds the companies of the future, and argues that gender bias operates at every stage of the funding process, from initial access to the questions asked at pitch and the way risk and growth potential are assessed.
Industry voices interviewed for the piece point to structural factors. Maaike Steinebach, founder and CEO of Femtech Future, said women entrepreneurs face a greater evidentiary burden, with more proof, pilots and technical validation required, and are more often asked about family responsibilities. Harshika Patel, Asia CEO of JP Morgan Private Bank, said venture capital and growth equity often depend on personal introductions, leaving women without established networks at a disadvantage, and that a thin early funding record can make bank underwriting harder to satisfy. The article also notes that about a quarter of countries limit women's property rights, restricting collateral, and that women often have shorter credit histories.
World Economic Forum economic inclusion head Silja Baller, a lead author of the WEF's 2025 gender gap report, argued that women are under-represented among investment decision-makers, reducing the diversity of risk and opportunity perception. Lemuel Lee, head of Hong Kong at BNP Paribas Wealth Management, said the sector has moved 'from exclusion towards underutilisation' and that backing women-led businesses is a sound way to widen the opportunity set.
Networks and mentorship were highlighted as a key gap. Kanas Chan, head of HSBC Private Bank, North Asia and Hong Kong, and Ruby Yiu, head of emerging business at OCBC Hong Kong, both emphasised that women founders value business networks, market visibility and mentoring alongside financing. The article notes positive signs in Hong Kong, citing the 2025 'Tipping the Scale' report from Women Chief Executives Hong Kong, KPMG and The Women's Foundation, which found a growing number of female angel investors and women-founded VC firms.
Looking ahead, McKinsey & Co. projects women will hold roughly 40-45 per cent of wealth, around US$113 trillion, by 2030, up from about one third of retail financial assets in the EU and US today. Baller said that while women are often owners of wealth, they are not always the decision-makers on how capital is allocated, and that this represents a key opportunity.
Industry voices interviewed for the piece point to structural factors. Maaike Steinebach, founder and CEO of Femtech Future, said women entrepreneurs face a greater evidentiary burden, with more proof, pilots and technical validation required, and are more often asked about family responsibilities. Harshika Patel, Asia CEO of JP Morgan Private Bank, said venture capital and growth equity often depend on personal introductions, leaving women without established networks at a disadvantage, and that a thin early funding record can make bank underwriting harder to satisfy. The article also notes that about a quarter of countries limit women's property rights, restricting collateral, and that women often have shorter credit histories.
World Economic Forum economic inclusion head Silja Baller, a lead author of the WEF's 2025 gender gap report, argued that women are under-represented among investment decision-makers, reducing the diversity of risk and opportunity perception. Lemuel Lee, head of Hong Kong at BNP Paribas Wealth Management, said the sector has moved 'from exclusion towards underutilisation' and that backing women-led businesses is a sound way to widen the opportunity set.
Networks and mentorship were highlighted as a key gap. Kanas Chan, head of HSBC Private Bank, North Asia and Hong Kong, and Ruby Yiu, head of emerging business at OCBC Hong Kong, both emphasised that women founders value business networks, market visibility and mentoring alongside financing. The article notes positive signs in Hong Kong, citing the 2025 'Tipping the Scale' report from Women Chief Executives Hong Kong, KPMG and The Women's Foundation, which found a growing number of female angel investors and women-founded VC firms.
Looking ahead, McKinsey & Co. projects women will hold roughly 40-45 per cent of wealth, around US$113 trillion, by 2030, up from about one third of retail financial assets in the EU and US today. Baller said that while women are often owners of wealth, they are not always the decision-makers on how capital is allocated, and that this represents a key opportunity.
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