Alliance of 64 influential parties launched to improve entrepreneurial climate for women

• Today, 64 leading organisations announced their cooperation under Code-V: an alliance spanning the government, the financial industry and the advocacy sector.

• All organisations involved are committed to promoting equal opportunities for female entrepreneurs in the Netherlands.

• The alliance highlights the need for data insights, interventions and investments to promote equal opportunities in entrepreneurship in the Netherlands.

• Equal opportunities for female entrepreneurs bring significant benefits in areas like job growth, innovation, sustainability, greater financial resilience — plus growth of the Dutch economy by an estimated 139 billion euros, as research carried out by ABN AMRO and McKinsey shows.

Code-V is the result of intensive cooperation within a working group of public and private sector parties over several months. This collaboration was initiated by Chantal Korteweg, ABN AMRO’s Director Social Impact & Inclusive Banking. The code consists of three main parts: Insight-gathering, Interventions and Investment. The first step towards focused and effective investment is to identify which obstacles female entrepreneurs currently face. At the moment, 13 countries around the world are already analysing their financial data based on gender, and the Netherlands is not among them.

Chantal Korteweg explains, "In the Netherlands, we’re often proud of our competitive economy, but there’s still a great deal of untapped potential. Research shows that women run up against more and different obstacles than entrepreneurs in general. Moreover, the gap is already present when starting a business is still just an idea. And it widens with each further step in the entrepreneur’s journey. Making equal opportunities happen calls for a collective approach. The alliance partners here today share the ambition to accelerate female entrepreneurship, eliminate obstacles and promote equal opportunities in entrepreneurship. Code-V got its inspiration from the successful Investing in Women Code introduced in the United Kingdom. This code has significantly boosted numbers of female starters and the amount of financing flowing to female entrepreneurs overall.”

Numbers of female starters flatlining

The parties supporting Code-V span the public and private sector. They range from the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate to big banks and advocacy organisations. Outgoing Minister Micky Adriaansens: “The number of new female entrepreneurs is lagging behind. Female entrepreneurship is indispensable to our economy. We need a mix of people to do the right things. We are taking a great step with the so-called Code-V”.

ABN AMRO CEO Robert Swaak: “The financial sector has a social responsibility to identify the obstacles that female entrepreneurs face and work to eliminate these obstacles where possible. By cooperating sector-wide on this issue, we can accelerate the necessary transition towards a more inclusive entrepreneurial climate in the Netherlands.”

Global approach

Worldwide, the Netherlands is the fourth country to launch an alliance to improve the entrepreneurial climate for women. The main source of inspiration is the successful Investing in Women Code in the United Kingdom, which has already led to a significant increase in financing flows to female entrepreneurs. Building on the British success, the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi), part of the World Bank, has launched the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Code to close the financing and data gap for female entrepreneurs in developing countries.

“Despite their potential to add value to the economy and create jobs, female entrepreneurs in developing countries often have trouble getting the financing they need to achieve their goals,” says Wendy Teleki, who heads the We-Fi Secretariat. “We-Fi is working closely with its implementation partners to test the We Finance Code in 24 countries. Our aim is to bring about systemic changes in the financial sector and get more financing to women. The launch of Code-V gives me hope, and we look forward to working side by side with the Netherlands on this critical mission."

About Code-V

Code-V is a Dutch alliance aimed at accelerating female entrepreneurship by eliminating obstacles and giving female entrepreneurs better access to financing and essential knowledge. The initiative also aims to raise public awareness of the financial inequality between female and male entrepreneurs, thereby helping to end this inequality and create equal opportunities. Code-V’s long-term goal is a more diverse and inclusive business ecosystem that fosters innovation and boosts the female employment rate. The efforts of the alliance will also contribute to economic growth by supporting female entrepreneurs in scaling up their businesses and expanding them internationally. This calls for systemic changes and sustained collaboration between public and private sectors for an agreed period of three to seven years.

• Code-V has been signed by the following 44 parties: ABN AMRO, Arches Capital, Brabant Start-up Community (including BOM, Braventure, Brabant Startup Fonds (BSF), REWIN, Midpoint Brabant, Brainport Development, Agrifood Capital), Borski Fund, Business Angels Connect, FundsUp, Geldvoorelkaar, Great Stuff Ventures, Horizon, ING, InnovationQuarter, Invesdor, Invest-NL, Investormatch, Joanna Invests, Karmijn Kapitaal, LIOF, Lumo Labs, Nationaal Groenfonds, NOM, Oost NL, PIN Voorschot, Pymwymic, Qredits, Rabobank, ROM InWest, ROM Utrecht Region, SET Venture, Shaping Impact Group, SheCredit, SHIFT Invest, StartGreen Capital, The Angel Initiative, TIIN Capital, TP24, Venturerock, Voordegroei, 4impact.

• Code-V is officially supported by the following 10 parties: Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate, Ministry of Finance, MKB Nederland, the Dutch Banking Association (NVB), Nederlandse Vereniging van Participatiemaatschappijen (NVP), Rijksdienst voor Ondernemend Nederland (RVO), Stichting MKB financiering, VNO-NCW and Business Angels Netwerken Nederland.

• Code-V was also made possible by support from the following 10 parties: Deloitte, Erasmus Centre for Entrepreneurship (ECE), Female Ventures, FEM-START, Greenberg Traurig, Masters of Scale, Radboud University, Techleap.nl, VU Amsterdam and WOMEN Inc.,