Code-V: Encourage female entrepreneurship

Equal opportunities for female entrepreneurs will bring significant benefits in areas like job growth, innovation, sustainability and greater financial resilience. Code-V consists of three main parts: Gaining insights, Making interventions and Investing. To ultimately make targeted and effective investments, it is first necessary to identify the barriers women currently experience when doing business. There are now 13 countries worldwide that analyze their financial data based on gender.

The signatories of the V-code are the financial institutions that will also collect and share their data. The Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) is not one of the listed signatories - as this proved to be more difficult for the government - but has stated support. Ellen van der Vossen is the program and community coordinator for female entrepreneurship at RVO and explains why Code-V is an important step: "We see, also in the RVO program Growth across borders, that female entrepreneurs encounter obstacles such as access to network, information and financing. This hinders their entrepreneurship in a way that most male entrepreneurs do not encounter."

A level playing field for women is essential because it leads to benefits such as job growth, innovation, sustainability, greater financial resilience and development of the Dutch economy by, according to ABN AMRO's estimate, 139 billion euros. The ultimate goal of Code-V is a more diverse and inclusive business ecosystem that drives innovation and increases women's labour force participation. Director KPNL & JZ Danielle van der Vliet has pledged support on behalf of RVO: "The objective of Code-V is one that we at RVO want to commit ourselves to with heart and soul. For example, by paying attention to inclusivity and diversity in our own organization, but also by continually checking whether our programs and activities are equally accessible and employable for every entrepreneur, regardless of gender and background."

The following parties have signed Code-V:

ABN AMRO, Arches Capital, BOM, Borski Fund, Business Angels Connect, Business Angels Networks Netherlands, Female Ventures, FundsUp, Money for Each Other, Great Stuff Ventures, Horizon, ING, InnovationQuarter, Invesdor, Invest-NL, Investormatch, Joanna Invests, Karmijn Kapitaal, LIOF, Lumo Labs, Newion, NOM, Oost NL, PIN advance, Privium Fund Management, Pymwymic, Qredits, Rabobank, ROM InWest, ROM Utrecht Region, SET Venture, Shaping impact group, SheCredit, SHIFT Invest, Startgreen Capital, The Angel Initiative, TIIN Capital, TP24, Venturerock, Voordegroei and 4impact.

And the following parties support Code-V:

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate, Ministry of Finance, MKB Nederland, Dutch Banking Association (NVB), Dutch Association of Participation Companies (NVP), Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO), SME Financing Foundation, VNO-NCW.