"NatWest has surpassed its headline commitment to lend £2 billion to women-led businesses by the end of 2025, announcing that it has already delivered £2.84 billion in funding across more than 55,900 loans. The achievement comes a full year ahead of schedule and reinforces the bank's role as one of the UK's largest backers of female entrepreneurship. The average loan size stood at around £50,700, with high demand seen across a wide variety of sectors."
"Health-related enterprises received the most support, followed by leisure, commercial real estate, retail and professional services. Regionally, London led the way in total lending, closely trailed by the South East, North West, Scotland and the South West - signalling the breadth of economic activity driven by women-run companies nationwide. Robert Begbie, CEO of NatWest Commercial & Institutional, described the milestone as proof of the scale and ambition of female-led firms: "Surpassing our £2bn investment target ahead of schedule shows the strength and ambition of female-led companies. Our commitment is long-standing, with over 1,000 Women in Business specialists, more than half of our accelerator founders being women, and the launch of the first ever €500 million social bond for female-led businesses.""
NatWest delivered £2.84 billion in funding to women-led businesses through more than 55,900 loans, exceeding its £2 billion target a year early. The average loan size was approximately £50,700. Health-related enterprises received the most support, followed by leisure, commercial real estate, retail and professional services. London recorded the highest total lending, with the South East, North West, Scotland and the South West also prominent. NatWest maintains over 1,000 Women in Business specialists, female representation among accelerator founders exceeding half, and has launched significant financial instruments including a €500 million social bond. Support programs date back to 2012.
Read at Business Matters
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]