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According to a recent PitchBook report, investment in projects led by women has registered a sustained increase since the last four months of 2020, when it rose by 19.5% (while the rest of the market fell 7.4%). This trend has been consolidated throughout this year that is ending, further supported by another historical index: female startups register the best capital outflows of all of 2021.
For further reference, the exits of female enterprises reached the historical mark of 59 billion dollars, a figure 146.3% higher than the one registered in all of 2020 for exits of female enterprises, and also exceed the 101.5% that corresponds to the rest from the market in 2021.
Market trends indicate that 2022 will be the year of startups in healthcare, technology, Artificial Intelligence, fintech, blockchain, cybersecurity and crypto, among other segments that took the lead in the pandemic. But it will also be the year in which special attention must be paid to what female investors indicate, who are steadily increasing in number and participation throughout the world.
All for one and one for all
Another PitchBook report reveals that there are more and more female angel investors and female mutual fund partners. By the end of 2018, women represented just 12% of the corporate quota in VC firms and there were 740 angel investors in total. Today this percentage rises to 15%, and angel investors are already around 1000.
At first, these numbers do not seem decisive and, nevertheless, they are key in the flow of investor money. Because there are many studies that show that women like to invest in other women or minorities, which also favors diversity and inclusion, generates better and faster returns and contributes to the recovery of the post-pandemic global economy.
If for every dollar invested, startups founded by women get more than double that of startups founded by men, if there are more and more pink unicorns in the world and the successful exits of female startups are replicated, it only remains to do the numbers to predict that investment in 2022 will have the face of a woman.
How and in what women invest
Women invest differently from men : they manage less volatile portfolios and are more patient to wait for returns. Psychiatrist Richard Peterson argues that women are better wired than men to avoid impulsive investments, contradicting the established prejudice that we are more emotional. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated that women leaders are more efficient to manage in times of crisis , precisely because they listen to their emotions but they also listen to those of others. It is this same approach to collaboration and temperance that has become a desirable value in any work team, board of directors or entrepreneurship.
But also, women choose differently.
- They prefer companies founded by women or by representatives of other minorities, and with diverse teams.
- They choose from their own experience, which gives them tangible guidelines on the behavior of the market and on the main challenges that entrepreneurs face, which for women are always greater.
- They are committed to social and environmental responsibility. Numerous studies show that women are more willing than men to receive less returns for investments in companies that have a positive impact on the world
Both in their personal finances and in their ventures and investments, women demonstrate a people-centered approach. They are interested in meeting their demands and offering services that improve their day-to-day life, but also create stimulating and diverse work spaces, and all without neglecting the long-range objectives that concern us all equally, and that build a better and more society. fair.
Investment and training needed
This is the time to shore up powerful female intuition with the digital skills that today’s world demands. One of the many digital training programs that echo this trend is Mujeres que Transforman , que SheWorks! It has just launched together with the Presidency of Colombia to develop, encourage and enhance the economic empowerment of women entrepreneurs in that country. Through this alliance, we provide training for Colombian women to compete in this digital world, focused on remote work and soft skills such as time management, collaboration, empathy and effective communication.
Although women show the path of investment, it is important to invest in strengthening the digital skills that are needed in this new reality, which includes artificial intelligence, social commerce and digital marketing, among other areas of interest. This is what we do precisely together with SENA de Colombia (National Learning Service), to train 15,000 Colombian women in digital skills that allow them to continue hacking the gap.
Investing always involves risk. In this peculiar moment that we live, everything seems to indicate that the risk of investing in feminine skills and ventures is the most intelligent. For the money. for people and for the planet ( people, planet and profit ).
