EIB Report Highlights Urgent Need to Expand Debt Financing for Women Entrepreneurs in the EU

The European Investment Bank (EIB) Group has unveiled a landmark report, “Debt Financing for Gender Equality in the EU – 2025 Mapping Study,” providing an in-depth analysis of how financial institutions across Europe are supporting women-owned and women-led businesses through debt financing and related services. The study sheds light on both encouraging developments and persistent structural barriers that continue to limit women’s access to finance within the European Union.

Unlocking Economic Growth Through Gender Equality

The report underscores that advancing gender equality is not only a social imperative but also an economic opportunity. According to EIB estimates, narrowing the gender finance gap could generate significant GDP growth across the EU and create millions of new jobs, particularly by unleashing the full potential of women entrepreneurs.

Despite this, women continue to face systemic challenges when seeking financial support. The study finds that female entrepreneurs often face higher interest rates, stricter collateral requirements, and lower loan amounts compared to their male counterparts. These financial barriers, compounded by limited access to mentoring networks and venture capital, hinder the ability of women-led businesses to grow and compete on equal footing.

Mapping Europe’s Gender-Focused Financial Landscape

Commissioned by the EIB Group Advisory Services with support from the European Union under the InvestEU Advisory Hub, the 2025 mapping study is one of the most comprehensive reviews of its kind. It identifies 95 gender-focused debt financing products currently implemented by European financial institutions—ranging from tailored loans to credit guarantees and blended finance mechanisms.

These initiatives fall into two broad categories:

1. Targeted products for women-owned or women-led enterprises, which directly prioritize female entrepreneurs in lending criteria or program design.

2. Gender-lens financial products, which include women as a key beneficiary group within broader inclusion or sustainability objectives.

The mapping reveals that while some Member States have robust ecosystems supporting female entrepreneurs, others lag behind, indicating considerable untapped potential. The uneven distribution highlights the need for policy harmonization and regional cooperation to ensure that women across the EU have equitable access to financing opportunities.

Insights from the Field: What Works and What Doesn’t

Through interviews with financial institutions, investors, and development agencies, the study identifies the motivations, challenges, and success factors driving gender-inclusive financing. Among the findings, financial institutions that actively engage women entrepreneurs tend to benefit from portfolio diversification, stronger client relationships, and improved credit performance.

Case studies across Europe reveal that successful programs share several characteristics:

• Intentional design, ensuring products reflect women’s business realities.

• Strategic partnerships, connecting financial institutions with women’s networks and chambers of commerce.

• Inclusive communication, using language and channels that resonate with women entrepreneurs.

• Complementary support, such as business training, mentoring, and peer-to-peer networking opportunities.

However, many institutions still lack sex-disaggregated data—making it difficult to assess how financing truly benefits women and to measure long-term impact.

Key Recommendations to Bridge the Gender Finance Gap

The EIB report lays out a comprehensive roadmap for financial institutions, development agencies, and EU policymakers to accelerate gender equality in finance. Its recommendations include:

1. Collect and analyze sex-disaggregated data to understand gender-specific financing patterns and outcomes.

2. Adopt internationally recognized definitions for women-owned and women-led enterprises to ensure comparability across countries.

3. Tailor products to local contexts, considering cultural, regulatory, and sectoral differences.

4. Integrate non-financial services—including mentorship, financial literacy programs, and networking—to increase the effectiveness of lending products.

5. Build cross-sectoral partnerships between banks, microfinance institutions, and women’s associations to expand outreach.

6. Use gender-responsive communication to build trust and increase uptake of available products.

The study emphasizes that addressing these areas is crucial to creating a more inclusive and dynamic European financial ecosystem—one where women have equal opportunities to innovate, invest, and lead.

EIB’s Role in Driving Inclusive Finance

The EIB Group—which includes the European Investment Bank and the European Investment Fund (EIF)—has long championed gender equality as part of its broader sustainable development agenda. Through initiatives such as InvestEU, SheInvest, and the 2X Challenge, the EIB has committed billions of euros to promote women’s economic empowerment, both within the EU and globally.

The Debt Financing for Gender Equality in the EU – 2025 Mapping Study builds on this legacy, offering policymakers and financial actors a data-driven framework to scale up gender-smart financing.

A Call for Action

As Europe transitions toward a more sustainable and innovative economy, ensuring equal access to finance for women entrepreneurs is vital. The EIB’s report serves as a call to action for financial institutions to move beyond one-size-fits-all approaches and develop products that reflect the diversity of women’s entrepreneurial experiences.

Closing the gender finance gap, the study concludes, will not only promote fairness—it will also unlock Europe’s untapped potential for inclusive growth, innovation, and resilience.