Fintech firms in 7 European cities ranked in the top 30 of the Global Fintech Index City Rankings 2020 have more than 40% of women on their books

By numbers alone, across many advanced markets women are now better represented in financial services firms than ever. Making up half or more of all financial services staff in eight countries – all of these ranking in the top 30 countries for fintech activity.

The findings from Global Fintech Index City Rankings 2020, the first global ranking of more than 230 cities across 65 countries for fintech activity, shows that developed markets where fintech is thriving, the percentage of women employed in the sector is rising. Finland (ranked 14th on the Index) employs 60% of women, followed by France (16th on the index), the USA (1st), Japan (22nd), Australia (8th), Spain (13th), Germany (11th) and Norway (27th).

But there is still a long way to go. A study conducted by the European Women in Payments Network (EWPN), a Strategic Partner of Findexable, the company behind the Global Fintech Index City Rankings 2020, found that 59% of women felt the industry doesn’t do enough to tackle gender inequality in pay and opportunities. Women were twice as likely as men to have had direct experience of some form of discrimination.

“It is encouraging to see that countries with advanced fintech ecosystems are beginning to show real intent in addressing the gender imbalance. But there is a long way to go, particularly in emerging markets where women, particularly in remote areas, are often ‘the last mile’ of global financial services. Fintech offers a viable way to tackle access to financial services, but we need women to form part of the solutions designed for women. Increasing diversity within fintech organisations will increase awareness of the multitude of issues excluded groups face. It is our hope that by bringing these issues to the fore, we can raise awareness and begin to make real change.” says Martha Mghendi-Fisher, Founder, EWPN

As progressive as fintech firms might sound in principle, in practice most of them look like they’re at risk of repeating the mistakes of their predecessors. Currently less than a third of fintech staff, and just 12% of fintech founders, are women.

“The Global Fintech Index is working to reset the balance. With two of our founding partners – EWPN and African Women in Payments Network (AWPN) – and we hope with many more partners yet to join us, we’re building a global coalition to report on and assess progress in creating a more diverse financial services marketplace,” explains Denise Gee, Founder and MD of Findexable.

It’s a noble goal but it can only be achieved if you can reliably track take-up on a regional and global level, while measuring the products that are being created to help close the gap.

Download the EWPN’s recent report “The End of the Tunnel” which explores the current state of play, and looks to address what more the industry can do to embrace diversity and inclusion.

Download the Global Fintech Index City Rankings 2020: https://findexable.com/gfi-download/

 

Women’s share of employment in financial services in 2018

Country GFI Ranking % Women

Employed

Finland 14 60%
France 16 58%
United States 1 55%
Japan 22 53%
Australia 8 53%
Spain 13 52%
Germany 11 51%
Norway 27 50%
Italy 24 44%
Sweden 7 44%
UK 2 43%

Sources: Catalyst 2019 and Global Fintech Index City Rankings 2020

 

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The Global Fintech Index (GFI) by Findexable is the first global, real-time, objective ranking of all cities where there is a fintech cluster. The rankings are determined and updated using our proprietary algorithm. It is digital and real-time. It uses open data & data sharing to create a continuously updated index.

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The GFI is designed to highlight opportunities and drive transparency across the ecosystem. We are on a mission to help financial institutions, governments and investors understand how innovation is evolving, where to invest, and what it takes to build a thriving fintech ecosystem.

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