August 26th is known as Women’s Equality Day and celebrates the adoption of the Nineteenth Amendment, prohibiting the government from denying the right to vote based on sex. In celebration of Women’s Equality Day this week, we looked at female-founded companies in the online private markets.
- In the first half of 2022, 163 raises with female founders went live online, compared to 149 in the first half of 2023.
- 558 raises in total went live in the first half of 2023. The 149 female-founded companies made up about 26% of total raises.
- For perspective, 18.5% of venture deals thus far in 2023 had mixed-gender founding teams. 7.4% were strictly female-founded companies.
- In the first half of 2023, female founders raised $40.7 million in capital, down from $54.2 million in the first half of 2022. This decline likely reflects the general market slowing down in 2023 amid macroeconomic turbulence.
- All companies raising online totaled $135.9 million for the first half of 2023. With $40.7 million raised, companies with a female founder comprised 29.9% of capital.
- Thus far in 2023, 17.9% of venture dollars went to mixed-gender founding teams, while just 2.1% went to companies with only female founders.
- Despite declines year-over-year in the online private markets funding female entrepreneurs (likely the result of general investor pullback), equity crowdfunding is still outpacing traditional ventures.
*This data comes from CF and A equity raises only that started between January 1st and June 30th of their respective years
