For Allies

Our Ambition

By 2035, 50% of decision-makers at VC firms are currently underrepresented investors.

By 2035 at least £50p per £1 of venture capital funding in climate tech is received by currently underrepresented founders.

We can’t get there alone

• For every £1 of venture capital (VC) investment in the UK, all-female founder teams get less than 1p, and mixed-gender teams 10p. At current rates, all-female teams reaching 10% of all deals will take more than 25 years (until 2045).

• Extend Ventures found that through 2009-19 seed stage rounds, entrepreneurs perceived to be White within founding teams were invested in at rates of 87%, with a growing capture of investment through the stages. All other ethnicities took a declining position with Black (0.53% of later stage) and East Asian (1.46%) founders securing the smallest share.

• Between 2009 and 2019, Black founders captured only 0.24% of venture funding vs their representation of 3.5% of the UK population; female founders captured only 11% of venture funding vs their representation of 51% of the population; and teams with an elite-educated founder captured 43% of venture funding vs less than 1% representation.