Female Entrepeneurs in the US Are Securing 8% Less Capital Than Their Male Counterparts
October 01 2019 - 9:09AM
Business Wire
HSBC ‘She’s the Business’ report reveals
challenges female entrepeneurs face when seeking investment
New research published today by HSBC Private Banking reveals
that almost half of female entrepreneurs in the US experience
gender bias when raising capital for their business. The bias
becomes apparent during the investment process, when female
entrepreneurs are asked questions about their family circumstances,
their credibility as business leaders and loss prevention. The
research found significant differences across markets, with female
entrepreneurs in the UK and US experiencing the highest levels of
gender bias (54% and 46%, respectively) and those in mainland China
experiencing the lowest levels of gender bias at 17%.
In addition, almost two thirds (61%) of female entrepreneurs
pitch to all or predominantly male investors, with less than one in
10 pitching to all or mostly female investors.
HSBC Private Banking commissioned the ‘She’s the Business’
report to explore the challenges female entrepreneurs face when
seeking investment. The research, conducted amongst more than 1,200
entrepreneurs in Europe, Asia, the Middle East and the US, will
help inform HSBC Private Banking’s ongoing work to overcome the
barriers facing female entrepreneurs during the investment
process.
“We’re committed to taking an active role in understanding the
barriers that are preventing female entrepreneurs from reaching
their full potential and to providing these women with the
opportunities and resources they need to help grow their business,”
said Heather Flanagan, Head of Private Wealth Solutions, HSBC
Private Banking, Americas.
Confidence is Key
The research revealed that 68% of female entrepreneurs in the US
are confident during the pitch process, but later, when they were
asked about what they would do differently, the same women ranked
confidence as their number one area for improvement.
Female respondents on the whole displayed a greater tendency
toward introspection and self-criticism as they reflected on what
they could have done better in the pitch. Unlike their male
counterparts – who are more likely to wish that they had done more
preparation – our findings reveal that women are more likely to
wish they had managed to stay positive and maintain a more
consistently optimistic approach throughout the investment
process.
Key findings include:
- Globally, half of female entrepreneurs’ investment pitches
are denied funding
- Female entrepreneurs are most likely to be denied funding in
Hong Kong (68%) and Singapore (59%), and are most likely to be
successful in the US (65%) and France (62%).
- There are a number of factors that female entrepreneurs
suggest need to change to help improve the investment process
including:
- Access to networks: Having a strong support network is
essential for entrepreneurial success, however a lack of peers and
mentors is limiting female entrepreneurs in terms of growth. Having
access to business networks can help female entrepreneurs
facilitate introductions and connections to help scale their
business.
- Overcoming bias: Female entrepreneurs felt bias could be
prevented with the help of investors, for example by regular
reviews of their investment choices (73%) and by having mixed
investor panels (46%).
- Investment knowledge: Female entrepreneurs would like greater
clarity on the specific investment criteria needed to be included
in pitch presentations and would like more transparency around the
entire investment process.
“This research shows the importance of women supporting one
another on a global scale. At AllBright, we are making networks
available to female entrepreneurs to build connections with fellow
entrepreneurs and investors alike,” said Debbie Wosskow OBE,
co-founder of AllBright. “Our partnership with HSBC Private Banking
is bringing expertise to female entrepreneurs as part of our shared
ambition to help them grow.”
HSBC Private Banking is committed to supporting female
entrepreneurs to overcome the challenges during the investment
process in a number of ways, including:
- Supporting the AllBright Pitch Day series in the UK and the US
by mentoring businesses, providing expertise and leveraging its
extensive networks to provide female entrepreneurs with extra
support.
- Partnering with AllBright to host a week long AllBright
‘pop-up’ in November including Pitch Days, pitch courses and
investor workshops.
- Serving as a founding partner of The WealthiHer Network,
alongside some of Britain’s biggest financial institutions, to
champion the diversity of women’s wealth and support female
investors and entrepreneurs. Other financial institutions involved
include Barclays and JP Morgan.
-ENDS/MORE-
- For further findings from She’s the Business, visit:
hsbcprivatebank.com and download the report.
- Bias includes social class, gender, age, educational
background, sector and ethnicity.
Notes to editors:
About the research: Commissioned by HSBC Private Banking,
the research was conducted by Kantar and Savanta between June 2019
– July 2019 and includes the views of over 1,200 entrepreneurs in
eight markets, as well as in-depth entrepreneur and investor
interviews. The respondents were a) major shareholders and
active decision makers in a privately owned business, and b) who
had secured or are in the process of securing £100,000 capital,
excluding self-funding or via friends and family. The research
covered mainland China, France, Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, Singapore,
UK, the United Arab Emirates, and the USA.
About HSBC Bank, USA HSBC Bank USA, National Association
(HSBC Bank USA, N.A.) serves customers through retail banking and
wealth management, commercial banking, private banking, and global
banking and markets segments. It operates bank branches in:
California; Connecticut; Washington, D.C.; Florida; Maryland; New
Jersey; New York; Pennsylvania; Virginia; and Washington. HSBC Bank
USA, N.A. is the principal subsidiary of HSBC USA Inc., a
wholly-owned subsidiary of HSBC North America Holdings Inc. HSBC
Bank USA, N.A. is a Member of FDIC. Investment and brokerage
services are provided through HSBC Securities (USA) Inc., (Member
NYSE/FINRA/SIPC) and insurance products are provided through HSBC
Insurance Agency (USA) Inc.
About HSBC Private Banking As part of the HSBC Group, one
of the world’s largest banking and financial services
organisations, HSBC Private Banking seeks to be the leading
international private bank for business owners and their families.
It provides clients with wealth, business and family succession
solutions in the largest and fastest growing markets around the
world. HSBC Private Bank is the marketing name for the private
banking business conducted by the principal private banking
subsidiaries of the HSBC Group. For more information, visit
www.hsbcprivatebank.com.
About AllBright AllBright celebrates and champions women
to inspire change through members’ clubs, the AllBright digital
Academy and a programme of live events. Designed to enable the
necessary skills, connections and confidence smart women need to
thrive, AllBright runs a monthly pitch day for female founders, as
well as digital training and in-person workshops through its
Academy.
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Carolyn Hamm 212-525-0720 carolyn.hamm@us.hsbc.com
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