• Women held just 13.5% of general partner roles in Europe's VC industry last year, per Atomico.
• Diversity can still improve despite the collapse in funding in 2023, says Oxx's Ingrid Bonde Akerlund.
• Insider highlighted 11 women who have been promoted to partner or higher so far this year.

Europe's venture capital ecosystem has long boasted a dire track record when it comes to diversity.

Last year, women VCs held just 13.5% of general partner roles — with even fewer having access to carried interest or the same amount of capital as their male counterparts. 

The lack of representation in top-level positions has a trickle-down effect with female-founded startups securing a meager 1.1% of VC funding in 2022.

In addition, the depressed tech funding market will undoubtedly make promotions to executive roles more difficult. The frothy days of 2021, where runaway valuations were slapped on an array of startups, have been replaced by a market jostling with widespread layoffs and a collapse in VC funding.

But there are ways to ensure that women are pushed up the pipeline, with VC firms carrying a responsibility while recruiting for even junior positions, said Ingrid Bonde Akerlund, an investor at growth-stage VC Oxx.

VC firms can widen "the candidate pool, require diverse shortlists, and interview candidates with competency-based assessment techniques," she said. 

In Europe, there is a trend of recruiting ex-investment bankers and financial professionals into VC — but those sectors are also heavily male-dominated. To combat this, firms can evaluate candidates "on the skills and competencies related to long-term indicators of success in venture," as opposed to short-term skills that can be trained on the job, Akerlund told Insider.

Investors in funds, or LPs, also have a role to play in backing women-led funds, according to Zero Carbon Capital's founding partner Pippa Gawley. Gawley reached third close on a $37 million fund this year and uses her position to champion diversity upward to LPs, she said. LPs should engage with organizations such as European Women in VC, Newton Venture Program, and Included VC, which support women and diverse investors, she said. 

The venture capital and startup ecosystem is skewed towards men, and LPs are no different. Research from Barcelona-based firm Nina Capital found just 27.9% of LPs analyzed were women. 

Last year, Insider recorded 24 women VCs who were promoted to partner or higher. This year, we have spotlighted 11 contenders who have landed top roles at European VC firms. 

There have also been women smashing the ceiling and going at it alone, opting to raise solo GP funds. Annelie Ajami, the founder of UK-based Anamcara Capital, is one such example. Ajami closed her pre-seed and seed fund in 2023, though it was founded in years prior. 

If you have a nomination that we can add to the list, email the reporters at [email protected] and [email protected].