Leading figures from Wales' business and investment community gathered in Cardiff for a landmark roundtable focused on boosting female entrepreneurship.
The event, held at Tramshed Tech, was part of the Invest in Women Taskforce’s regional engagement series.
It brought together the Chancellor of Exchequer Rachel Reeves; First Minister of Wales, Eluned Morgan; the Secretary of State for Wales, Jo Stevens; and the co-chairs of the Invest in Women Taskforce, Hannah Bernard OBE, Head of Business Banking at Barclays UK and Debbie Wosskow OBE, multi-exit entrepreneur.
The in-depth discussions centred on how to address the funding gap women face, both as investors and as founders, and what support is and could be available for female founders in Wales.
The Invest in Women Taskforce's investment pool has already convened its initial £250 million target to support female entrepreneurs across the UK, with opportunity for more institutional investment to scale the fund’s impact.
New data released at the event by the Taskforce’s data partner Beauhurst highlighted the current landscape for female founders in Wales:
- Fully-female founded teams in Wales received just 2.3% of equity investment in 2024 while all male teams received more than 75%
- Wales ranks highest out of all 12 UK nations and regions for mixed-gender leadership composition – a positive trend, with 22.3% of investment going to mixed gender teams, surpassing the UK average of 17%
- Only 5.22% of Welsh businesses are led by all-female teams, highlighting the scale of the gender imbalance despite high-growth potential in Wales.
Louise Harris, CEO and Co-founder of Tramshed Tech, who hosted the event, said:
“As a female founder myself, I know firsthand the unique challenges women face when building and scaling businesses in Wales.
“This roundtable directly aligns with Tramshed Tech’s mission to connect growing businesses with all they need to succeed. Today's discussions weren't just about funding; they were about creating pathways that acknowledge the experiences of women in business.
“Opportunities like today will help us continue developing training programmes, mentorship and innovation spaces where female founders can thrive. This is personal for me, and a critical step toward our vision of making Wales a global hub for high growth tech companies – one where all entrepreneurs play a leading role in shaping our future economy.”
Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, said:
“Ensuring that female entrepreneurs across the UK, including here in Wales, have access to the investment they need is crucial for driving economic growth and innovation.
“The work of the Invest in Women Taskforce is unlocking investment opportunities for women-led businesses. By creating a more inclusive investment landscape, we can help ensure that female entrepreneurs thrive, strengthening our economy and fostering long-term success.”
First Minister Eluned Morgan said:
“Supporting female founders is not just about equality – it’s about unlocking economic potential, driving innovation and strengthening our business ecosystem.
“We must take a proactive approach to increasing investment in women-led businesses, ensuring female founders have equal access to capital. The Welsh Government is committed to working with investors, financial institutions and businesses to improve funding pathways and reduce barriers for women entrepreneurs.”
Hannah Bernard of Barclays, representing the Invest in Women Taskforce, highlighted the importance of regional engagement, saying:
“The Invest in Women Taskforce was set up to make the UK the best place in the world to be a female entrepreneur. There is recognition of the significant contribution female entrepreneurs make to Wales’ economic success, and it’s critical that this ambition is matched with funding. We have to drive systemic change across the whole country if we are going to create lasting and sustainable impact. While we are making progress with the Women Backing Women Fund, more investment is needed to ensure it delivers at the scale female founders deserve.”
Key outcomes from the roundtable included:
- Commitment to increased institutional investment – The roundtable secured commitments to address the funding gap for female entrepreneurs in Wales, with participants recognising the urgent need for more institutional investment. As highlighted during discussions, while female-led businesses deliver 35% higher returns than male-led ventures, they currently receive only 2% of UK venture capital. Attendees committed to actively seeking additional investors for the Women Backing Women Fund, to fully unlock its potential and drive meaningful change for female entrepreneurs across the country.
- Regional investment development participants emphasised the critical importance of ensuring the Women Backing Women Fund reaches female-powered businesses across all UK regions, particularly addressing the current concentration of investment in southeast England. The discussion highlighted Wales' position as having the highest proportion of mixed teams, pointing to a healthy pipeline and creating a compelling case for regional fund managers who understand the local ecosystem. As one participant noted, “What we want is for the some of the funding to be specifically ring fenced for Wales” – underscoring the commitment to equitable regional distribution of investment.
- Building a stronger female investor community – The roundtable highlighted the need to strengthen the female investor pipeline in Wales, with clear evidence that female investors are twice as likely to back women-led businesses. The current landscape, where just 15% of senior investment decision-makers are female, creates systemic barriers to funding. Participants discussed expanding networks like Women Angel Wales to cultivate the next generation of female investors while amplifying success stories of Welsh female entrepreneurs to inspire others and demonstrate the untapped potential when women receive proper investment backing.
The Invest in Women Taskforce has already secured backing from major investors including Barclays, M&G, the British Business Bank, Morgan Stanley, Visa Foundation, BGF, and Aviva. The roundtable focused on strategies to leverage this fund to attract further inward investment specifically for Wales.
The event concluded with networking and a commitment from attendees to reconvene to review progress on the initiatives discussed.
“The roundtable discussions confirmed what we've known at Tramshed Tech – that female founders need targeted support that addresses their specific challenges,” added Louise Harris. “We have a range of Female Founder activity in the pipeline and are actively seeking funding partners, If you're passionate about advancing women's entrepreneurship in Wales, I encourage you to get in touch with us at ventures@tramshedtech.co.uk to explore collaboration opportunities.”
