Only 4.2pc of top bankers are women
ONLY 17 of the top 220 most senior bankers on investment banks’ executive committees or equivalent are women, according to research published yesterday.
The study, carried out by Financial News, shows that women make up just eight per cent of banks’ executive, corporate and investment banking committees – fewer than one female member for each of the 20 banks surveyed.
When women do rise to the top, it tends to be in human resources or communications roles, rather than straight banking positions. Excluding such roles, only nine out of 212 senior investment banking executives are women – just 4.2 per cent.
A specific breakdown of the investment banking statistics reveal the least female representation of all, with women better represented on group boards or group executive committees than in specific investment banking divisions.
Five of the banks surveyed had no women on the executive committees that run their banking divisions.
Deutsche Bank, Barclays Capital, RBC Capital Markets, Jeffries and Mediobanca all have male-only boards, with a further six banks that have appointed just one woman to the committees.
Swiss bank Credit Suisse fared a little better in the research, with four women sitting on its 16-person corporate and investment banking board, including finance chief Lara Warner, and credit officer Sharon Meadows.
Nomura declined to name the members of its investment banking committee, but said that three of the 17 were women, with Clara Furse the sole female member of the Japanese bank’s group board.
The study also draws attention to new French legislation passed in January, which introduces quotas that require businesses to have a minimum of 20 per cent of their board made up of women, rising to 40 per cent within six years.
The UK has so far shied away from quotas, with key figures such as Lord Davies and Lord Myners insisting they are unnecessary in order to reach the desired figures.