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Two Funds Aimed at Women Led Companies are Launched (and The Start of Shareholder Activism on Gender Diversity)
Two funds which focus on women-led companies have launched in the last couple of weeks: The Women Leadership Fund and The Texas Women Ventures Fund. Both make a business case that investing in gender-diverse companies gives higher returns and fulfills an important socio-economic objective. The Women Leadership Fund, however, has an extra objective as the first activist shareholder with a focus on gender diversity.
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The Texas Women Ventures Fund
The Texas Women Ventures Fund, which was launched by 4 female founders in 2005, has announced its second fund, focusing on high growth business. With a $1m commitment, the lead investor has been The Boone Family Foundation. The foundation strives to invest in companies which are able to pass the 60-second test, inter alia – an established track record of $7 to $70 million in revenue and established in Texas and the Southwest – and where women have equity in the business. The aim is to provide a minimum of $750,000, advice, mentoring and a network of resources to qualified businesses. The fund does not invest in startups, and has a current portfolio of women-led companies within the construction and restaurant sectors.
The Women Leadership Fund
The Women Leadership Fund was launched at the end of September 2009, by Swiss-based Naissance Capital to invest in companies with a market capitalisation of $200m US or higher and a liquidity of $10m US or greater. The extra investment requirement is based on both qualitative and quantitative gender screening.
In practice this means companies need to have a 20% greater than average number of women in key roles, and a very favourable gender policy and track record (through awards etc.).
The fund wants to bank in on the presumption that firms scoring well in gender diversity are underpriced and possess hidden value.
Cherie Blair declares a Revolution as Women are Drivers of Economic Growth
At the launch event in New York on September 23, 2009, and in the presence of many prominent leaders, investors and women organisations, Cherie Blair, who is on the board of the Fund, delivered the keynote saying:
“By investing in those companies which have set a lead in harnessing women’s talent and potential, and supporting new women leaders, you are helping overcome the gender gap in business. You are also, of course, helping make money for your investors.
We simply can’t go on not making the most of the talents and potential of half the population. [...] For a revolution is happening. And those firms and countries which don’t understand this are going to be left behind. In developed and developing nations, women have become the drivers of economic growth. The term womenomics has been coined to describe this global phenomenon, seen by some experts as the single most important factor in our economies this century.”
Janet Hanson of 85Broads, a global network for women in finance said:
“The opportunity to invest in women has many of the same strong ‘fundamentals’ [as investing 15-20 years ago in global warming] that make investing in this ‘undervalued asset class’ so compelling.”
The Women Leadership Fund is currently seeking 100 million from investors.
The Women Leadership Fund as Activist Shareholder on Gender Diversity
Apart from its regular investor role, the Fund also has a wider objective: that it wants to take upon an activist role as minority shareholder in companies which do not encourage gender diversity. In that respect it wants to increase the number of female executives in the main countries it operates in by 20% in the next 3-5 years. Shareholder activism and participation in public debate will be key.
Because of its activist role, a prominent board has been established comprised of Cherie Blair, Heidi StClair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Kim Campbell Former Prime Minister of Canada, Avivah Wittenberg-Cox Founder of European Professional Women’s Network, and author of ‘Womenomics’, Jenny Shipley, Former Prime Minister of New Zealand and Janet Hanson of 85Broads.
Source: Women Leadership Fund and http://www.texaswomenventures.com/
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“Swiss-based Naissance Capital to invest in companies with a market capitalisation of $200m US or higher and a liquidity of $10m US or greater…”
How many companies with market cap of $200m or higher *need* investment support? I think — with or without women in leadership positions — they’re probably already being courted by capital/financing options [!]