ING Belgium joins ‘We Are Jane’, a fund created by women for women
Even today, investment remains a male bastion. It is with great pride that ING Belgium joins ‘We Are Jane’, a unique investment fund which wants to make things change.
Why?
Even these days, female entrepreneurs have less access to the capital they need for their growth and innovation plan.
“This is unfunded. There’s plenty of evidence that companies with a higher proportion of women in top positions make better profits and are less at risk. Their approach is different. Women make fewer promises, but are more driven by the projects they want to implement. And the figures follow of their own accord.” says Conny Vandendriessche, one of the three partners of the fund.
How?
‘We Are Jane’ is a fund by women for women, and is 100% managed by women. Its purpose is to supply growth capital to companies with a female CEO or shareholder. Of course, an eye is kept on the figures. The fund only invests in companies with a proven track record, which at least break even and have a minimum turnover of 1.5 million Euros.
What is ING’s role?
ING Belgium is the second largest institutional investor in this fund. As a rule, ING’s strategy doesn’t include participation in investment funds, but an exception has been made for this particular story. This is a one-of-a-kind fund in Belgium.
Besides several large institutional investors, an impressive number of successful women entrepreneurs have also joined in. This has created a strong ecosystem of which ING Belgium is more than happy to be a part of. In the future, ING Belgium will also have a seat on the Board of Directors.
“We don’t give women any kind of preferential treatment whatsoever. ‘We Are Jane’ applies the same criteria to women as it would to men. It can be seen as a means of bringing down the unconscious prejudices women still have to face. Implicitly, people still associate entrepreneurship with men. By specifically targeting women, our fund intends to help overcome that unconscious bias.” according to Krista Baetens, Chief Risk Officer of ING Belgium.
For further info visit www.wearejane.be.