RBS launches £1bn female entrepreneurship funding
RBS announced a new £1bn in funding through NatWest to support female entrepreneurs in the UK to scale and grow – the largest intervention by a UK lender focused specifically on female-led businesses.
The bank has also announced that it is setting a target to support and inspire 500K people to consider starting a business – of whom at least 60% will be female – in order to help create at least 50k new businesses by 2023.
The female entrepreneurship funding builds directly on a key finding from The Alison Rose Review of Female Entrepreneurship (‘the Rose Review’), that the single biggest issue holding female entrepreneurs back is the lack of funding directed towards them.
According to the Rose Review, female-led businesses receive less funding than those headed by men at every stage of their journey. Women launch businesses with 53% less capital on average than men, are less aware of funding options and are less likely to take on debt. Open to both new and existing customers, the funding represents new lending into the UK economy and is intended to go some way to closing the gap with male entrepreneurs.
The new targets will make RBS the biggest supporter of start-ups in the UK. The bank will increase the level of support provided through its accelerator programme, and other initiatives and partnerships such as ‘Back Her Business’ and the The Prince’s Trust. This support is designed to tap into the unrealised potential for the UK economy and will be open to anyone who is looking to start-up a business, regardless of whether they are a customer of the bank or not.
RBS CEO, Alison Rose, commented:
“As we build a purpose-led bank that champions the potential of people, families and businesses up and down the country, we are focusing on the areas where we can have the biggest positive impact across society. Small businesses are the lifeblood of our economy and we are backing Britain’s entrepreneurs and helping them to thrive by removing barriers to success.
“The funding and targets announced today will help support anyone who is thinking about starting a business throughout the UK. There is much more to come. Building a business is often tough and lonely and can be harder than it needs to be. By tackling the most important issues facing our entrepreneurs, we can make a real difference to those who need it most, especially in female-led businesses.”
