Another 33 firms have signed up to the government’s
ground-breaking Women in Finance Charter, with 33,000 extra staff
in the UK now covered by the plan to tackle gender inequality in
financial services.
The news comes on the first anniversary of the charter, with 122
firms, employing over half a million people in the UK and
covering almost 50% of the financial services sector, now signed
up.
The Women in Finance
Charter, launched a year ago today, asks financial firms to
commit to four industry actions to build the female talent
pipeline for leadership positions. The Charter’s innovative
approach has been an unprecedented success with some of the UK’s
biggest and most well established firms signing up.
The latest signatories include retail banks such as CYBG, payment
firms such as VocaLink, global banks such as the Royal Bank of
Canada, insurers like Ageas UK, and other firms including Pinsent
Masons LLP and NS&I, while Bank of America Merrill Lynch is
the latest firm with headquarters in the US to sign up.
Since the Charter launched, 77 financial services firms have
committed to have at least 30% women in senior roles by 2021 and
23 firms have committed to a 50/50 gender split in senior roles
by 2021. New signatories will announce their targets in
June.
The Commercial Secretary, , said:
“I know how difficult it can be for a woman to get the
recognition she deserves and achieve her potential. And in
financial services particularly, women progress too slowly or
they leave the sector completely.
“We have made a strong start – the first anniversary of the
Women in Finance Charter sees 122 firms seizing the competitive
advantage by tackling sex inequality head on.
“But this is just the beginning. The financial industry
is famed for its ability to identify opportunities to improve
productivity. The Women in Finance Charter is one of those
opportunities. It offers the chance to increase diversity of
thought and for the financial services sector to better reflect
the society it serves. This is why I encourage firms across the
UK to step up and sign the Charter.”
Jayne-Anne Gadhia, CEO of Virgin Money and the government’s Women
in Finance Champion, said:
"I am delighted with the strong and ongoing momentum of the
Women in Finance Charter. A truly diverse financial services
sector will drive productivity and underpin the UK's position as
a strong and competitive economy. There is still further to go
and I urge more businesses to commit to the charter so that they
can play their part in building an economy that works for
everyone."
Bank of America Merrill Lynch joins the likes of Morgan Stanley,
BNY Mellon, BlackRock, Circle and Thomson Reuters, as the latest
firm with headquarters in the US to sign up, This proves that
there are no barriers for international firms to show their
commitment to gender parity by signing the Charter.
Alex Wilmot-Sitwell, President, EMEA at Bank of America Merrill
Lynch, said:
“Bank of America Merrill Lynch has a long history of
supporting women’s leadership and economic empowerment, but there
is clearly more to be done.
“Increasing the number of senior women and addressing gender
balance is crucial for our long-term success. This means
supporting and engaging women at all levels, to ensure a strong
pipeline of talent.
“We are wholly supportive of the Women in Finance Charter and
the positive impact it will have on our industry.”
FinTechs have also responded to the government’s call to action
with nine signing up including Nutmeg, RateSetter, Starling,
Monzo, Zerado, Azimo, and FINTECH Circle. ActivTrades is the
first finance broker to lead the charge.
The Gadhia
review looked at the issue of unequal gender
representation in financial services and found that in UK
financial services female representation was around 23% on
boards, but only 14% on executive committees. It is estimated
that equalising the role of men and women in the labour market
could increase GDP by 10% by 2030.
On 29th June, HM Treasury, in partnership
with GrowthBusiness.co.uk,
What Investment magazine and Virgin Money, will launch the
inaugural Women in Finance
Awards at The Savoy in London.
These awards will celebrate the individuals and organisations who
are leading change by driving the gender diversity agenda in
financial services.
