Today is Ladies Equality Day, also known as the day when women were given the right to vote. There is, of course, some nuance in the date, as indigenous women have not guaranteed that right in every state until 1962 and black women were not allowed to vote until 1965.
This story of slowed progress can still be seen in every US industry and sector. It is no different with venture capital. In total, women received 2.3% of the $341 billion in venture funds secured by US startups last year — that’s about $7.7 billionand it was a record amount for companies founded solely by women.
Progress in the amount of venture capital funding raised by companies with all-female teams has been slow and discouraging, albeit steady. Watch PitchBook DataIn 2008, all-female founders raised $461 million of the nearly $37 billion invested in US startups that year. In 2012, that number rose to $750 million (from over $41 billion) and then to $1.6 billion (from over $72 billion) in 2014.
“More women need to be funded and the round sizes need to be bigger.” Christie Pitts, General Partner, Backstage Capital
The cohort saw a slight decline in 2016, raising $1.4 billion (from nearly $78 billion), an amount that rose to a staggering $3.1 billion (from approximately $140 billion) in 2018. teams again fell slightly in 2020, eventually landing where it is today: $3 billion in venture funds compared to the $144.2 billion invested in US startups in the first two quarters of 2022.
These numbers tell a story as old as time – that change is far from linear.