More female angels needed

A new campaign was launched today aimed at encouraging more women to become angel investors.

According to a 2009 study, women own nearly half the wealth in the UK but make up only 5% of business angels. In the U.S the figure for female investors stands at 15%, and accounts for a third in France and Poland.

The campaign to encourage more women to become investors is a joint initiative between investors including female wealth management firm Addidi and the British Business Angels Association (BBAA)

Speaking at the launch of the campaign today Jenny Tooth, business development director of the BBAA, said there were roughly 18,000 angels currently investing between £600-800m in UK start-ups but not enough of them were women.

She said: “Many people put their money into all kinds of things such as property and shares. But we want more women to realise this is a real area to invest in and a real area for good returns.

“More importantly it’s a real area for fun and enjoyment. You can put your money into a small business to help nurture it and help it grow.”

Anna Sofat, founder of Addidi, said women were naturally great at being business angels as they are “good at building relationships and working collaboratively”.

She added: “Shows like Dragons’ Den, where a succession of trembling entrepreneurs are ‘slayed’ by the dragons, has led to angel investment being seen as a macho arena and we need to address this urgently.”

© Crimson Business Ltd. 2010