International Women’s Day Global Event with Martina Edwards

Equity in Access

Gender disparities in finance and commercial real estate persist, with women facing systemic barriers to capital and leadership roles. In 2025, female founders secured only 2.3% of venture capital globally, down slightly from prior years, while all-male teams claimed 83.6%. This gap widens in commercial real estate, where women hold just 2% of ownership stakes, limiting their ability to scale operations and contribute to economic vitality.

Recent developments amplify the issue. Martina Edwards' appointment as CEO of Access to Capital for Entrepreneurs (ACE) in January 2025 marked a milestone, enabling the organization to deploy over $237 million in loans to underserved businesses, retaining or creating more than 22,000 jobs in Georgia alone. Yet, this progress coincides with a broader DEI backlash, where firms like IBM and Constellation Brands retreated from explicit diversity policies amid political pressures, potentially stalling advances in inclusive hiring and funding.

The real-world impacts are profound. Women entrepreneurs, particularly in underrepresented communities, struggle with 34% less funding than non-minority counterparts, leading to slower business growth and reduced job creation. In Europe, where female board representation reached 42% in financial services by 2025, exceeding EU quotas, the push for pay transparency under new directives aims to close an 18.2% gender pay gap, but enforcement remains uneven.

Stakes include looming deadlines like the UN's Commission on the Status of Women in March 2026, where commitments to dismantle discriminatory laws could influence global finance. Inaction risks trillions in lost GDP; estimates suggest closing gender gaps could add $12 trillion to the global economy by 2030. Costs manifest in higher interest rates for women borrowers and missed innovation opportunities in sectors like real estate development.

Non-obvious tensions emerge between short-term backlash and long-term benefits. While some companies reframe DEI as 'performance-driven' to avoid controversy, evidence shows diverse teams outperform homogeneous ones by up to 35% in profitability. Trade-offs include balancing regulatory compliance with cultural shifts, where aggressive quotas might alienate stakeholders but foster resilience in volatile markets.