The share of VC firms with no women on their investment teams in the UK more than halved over the past decade, according to new data from Diversity VC.
Marking the group’s 10-year anniversary, Diversity VC published a new report on Wednesday which showed the number of VC firms with no women investors shrank from 48% in 2017 to 21% in 2025.
Overall representation has also improved, with women now making up 31% of VC investment teams overall, up from 18% eight years ago, underscoring a broader shift in hiring and promotion practices across the industry.
“For the first time, there are credible pathways into venture capital for people who would previously never have seen the industry as accessible,” said Meghan Stevenson Krausz, CEO of Diversity VC.
“These are signals that the system is beginning to shift. If the first decade of this work was about making the invisible visible, the next will be about making change unavoidable.”
More than 100 firms — collectively managing $44bn in assets — are now certified under the Diversity VC Standard, a framework designed to improve representation within venture capital.
Firms adopting the standard recorded a more than 10% increase in gender diversity, the report said, as well as gains in ethnic diversity, including a doubling of Black representation at senior levels.
Backed by investors including Atomico, Balderton Capital and Mubadala Capital, the report suggests structural changes are beginning to take hold in the industry, even if headline outcomes can take time to materialise long-term.
“When I started in venture in 2012 almost all partners in European venture funds were white, male, privileged backgrounds, straight and much older,” said William McQuillan. “While there is still a long way to go, that same statement cannot be said today.”
Diversity VC also highlighted the impact of its talent initiatives, with 97% of participants in its Future VC programme moving into full-time roles in venture capital or the wider investment ecosystem.
“It’s been remarkable to see how much the organisation has grown in scope and impact,” said Kathryn Mayne.
“The scale of change reflected in this report goes far beyond what I could have imagined.”
