This article originally appeared here.
Adding senior female partners to venture firms hasn’t resulted in an increase in funding for female-founded startups, according to a report published this week.
The analysis of 17 top firms by Bloomberg showed that those with senior women partners funded startups founded or co-founded by women at about the same rate as firms with no senior women partners.
It also found that the top 10 private companies founded or co-founded by women hadn’t raised any money from a female VC in its Series A or Series B rounds.
Top firms with all-male senior investing partners backed proportionately more women-founded startups, the analysis noted.
A recently formed Austin firm is looking to buck that trend. True Wealth Ventures, led by two female partners, Sara Brand and Kerry Rupp, is focusing only on investments in female-led startups. True Wealth recently invested $400,000 in a Houston-based health tech company, as part of a $1.5-million funding round.
Bloomberg reported that the firms with the most investments in companies with female founders were New Enterprise Associates, Founders Fund, Andreessen Horowitz (A16Z), and Sequoia Capital. All but A16Z have at least one senior female investing partner.
The firms with no senior female investing partners who back proportionately more female founders were Felicis Ventures, Lowercase Capital, Index Ventures and First Round Capital. Felicis made this tally although it had a female investor on its team until earlier this year.
Many venture firms that are working to increase diversity have said their efforts aren’t necessarily about increasing diversity of the founders they back. They cite, rather, studies that show more diversity among decision makers brings better results.
Jess Lee, who joined Sequoia last year after leading Sunnyvale-based online fashion company Polyvore, said her gender helps her find better companies to invest in.
“I consider it a competitive advantage,” she told Bloomberg. “I have an advantage in understanding the female consumer.”
