HSBC launches $1 billion fund to support female entrepreneurs

Global banking group, HSBC, has announced it will launch a $1 billion fund (around £820 million) to help improve access to finance for female entrepreneurs worldwide.

The funding aims to support female-led businesses and start-ups access the finance needed to grow: as of 2019, female entrepreneurs worldwide received just 3% of start-up funding and 2% of venture capital investment. The ringfenced fund will be distributed across 11 international markets, principally in Asia, but also in the UK and USA.

Sam Cooper-Gray, global head of market strategy at HSBC Business Banking, said:

“We are delighted to launch the Female Entrepreneur Fund and the HSBC Roar programme today to help address the challenges and bias that female leaders face.

“The level of funding received over time by female-led businesses is significantly lower than male counterparts, while the recent impacts of the pandemic have seen these same businesses disproportionately affected.

“Female-owned businesses are also less likely to have global networks, meaning international expansion can prove particularly challenging.

“As the global economy continues to rebuild from the impact of the pandemic, small and medium-sized businesses will continue to be the bedrock on which our economies and local communities are built, meaning we need to ensure that those led by women are given the support to fulfil their full potential.”

HSBC’s fund follows the launch of a similar initiative by NatWest in 2021, which allocated £1 billion for female-led businesses in the UK to support their recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Female-led businesses accessing the fund will also gain access to HSBC’s Roar programme of masterclasses for businesses.