Bumble’s IPO may be a feat “” but venture capital funding for women still a poor match

Bumble’s IPO may be a feat “” but venture capital funding for women still a poor match

When 31-year-old Bumble CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd takes her company public this week, she will be noted not only for her youth but also as one of the few female founders to lead her company to IPO.It's a fitting feat for the founder of a dating app designed to put women in the driver's seat. But it also hammers home the still mismatched playing field for men and women entrepreneurs.Bumble, whose board comprises 73% women, is expected to begin trading Thursday on the Nasdaq, just days before Valentine's Day. The company will sell its stock at $43 per share, raising $2.2 billion from investors. The offering initially values the company around $8 billion.The market response will act as a litmus test for investments in companies founded by women.Today, women account for just 7.4% of Fortune 500 CEOs “” an all-time high but still a staggeringly low figure. Female founders of public companies number even fewer. Nasdaq estimates that just 20 of today's active U.S. public companies were led through IPO by their female founder.

Female funding drops as global deals rise

The problem is not a lack of women entrepreneurs, but rather a lack of support where it matters: Funding.In a 2018