IDC European Woman in Venture Capital

EUROPEAN WOMEN IN VC IDC #EUR148997722 © IDC 2022 17 Besides the persistent gender gap and the ability to write cheques for startups, female GPs also do not have the same level of reward from success, of carried interest, devaluing the GP title for women 01 General Partners call the shots when investing in startups. As General Partners have a vested interest in these startups, their vote and usually personal capital investment represents value.  Survey results show that of VC investors with a GP title, 91% of the male General Partners have access to carried interest, compared to 70% of the female General Partners, and this difference is augmented in certain regions of Europe. This indicates that the General Partner title is not clearly defined in some European countries. In fact, 30% of female GPs are not GPs by definition, as they likely do not own shares in the Management Company or the rights to carried interest.  The fact that there is a 20% difference between male and female carried interest indicates that the female title of General Partner is of lesser value than that of the male General Partner.  Carried interest is the percentage of profits that will go to the fund manager. It’s how a GP is paid as incentive compensation to the VC fund’s general partnership when LPs see a return on their investment. Gender Balance access to Carried Interest 91% Male GP 70% Female GP Source: IDC European Women in VC Websurvey, VCs AuM >€25M, n=122