Women-led Funds and Startups in 2025

Hi there,

On the week of International Women's Day, I thought I'd touch on the topic, in line with this year's theme of "Accelerate Action". 
Also; 

📸 - Social Snapshot- What startups are

📊  - Private Capital Indexes

🎙️ - How VC money might ruin your exit w/ Dave Lambert

🆓 - Resources supporting founders looking to access capital

Welcome to issue 112

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Social Snapshot

💭 What venture is by Pat Walls on X.

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What VCs Look For in Early-Stage Startups with Dave Lambert

In the latest episode of the Fundraising Demystified podcast, I chat with Dave Lambert, founder of Right Side Capital. He shares what’s really happening in early-stage investing: why first-time founders obsess over valuation while seasoned ones don’t, the hidden traps of taking VC money too soon, and how AI is reshaping capital-efficient startups. 

Watch Now

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Data Corner

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Raising Capital for your startup?

Thunder's mission is to guide founders toward the right path to reach their North Star, be it through securing equity or debt financing or navigating the path to a successful exit. 

Talk to us

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If Women-Led Startups Outperform, Why Do Investors Still Hesitate?

Last week was International Women’s Day, which means the usual LinkedIn fanfare: VCs celebrating their portfolio’s token female founder, companies spotlighting their one woman partner, and a flood of posts about how women-led startups outperform.

And yet, here we are.

Women-founded startups still get a fraction of VC dollars. The latest data puts it at around 2% of total venture funding. That stat hasn’t budged much in years. Meanwhile, firms like First Round Capital have reported that women-led teams outperform by over 60%. The math doesn’t add up. Investors say they’re looking for returns, but if that were true, why isn’t the money following the results?

The Excuses Investors Give:

1. Pipeline Problem – The classic argument: “There just aren’t enough women-founded startups.” Sure, the numbers are lower, but there are plenty of high-growth, high-potential women-led companies that don’t get funded at the same rates as male-led ones. The issue isn’t supply; it’s access.

2. Risk Perception – Investors say they back the best teams, yet studies show women founders get grilled on risk mitigation, while men get asked about vision. Same game, different rules. That skews decision-making before the first check is even written.

3. Network Effects – Most VCs are men. Most LPs are men. They invest in who they know (I hope I'm not guilty of this, looking at my portfolio stats). And historically, they haven’t known many women founders. Pattern recognition is a nice way of saying "more of the same."

The Shift: Women-Led Funds Are Changing the Game

The good news is women investors are stepping up. We’re seeing a rise in women-led funds that prioritize overlooked founders. Firms like BBG Ventures, Rethink Impact, and others are putting serious capital behind women-led startups.

Will this close the gap? Maybe. But women-led funds still control a tiny percentage of venture capital. The biggest institutional LPs still allocate their dollars the old way, and until that changes, we’ll be having this same conversation next year.

My Experience: The Numbers Don’t Lie

Of the 75 guests on my podcast, only 11 have been women. That’s more than 2%, but still nowhere near parity. And it’s not for lack of trying, I actively look for women founders and investors to feature. If I’m struggling to find them, what does that say about the broader ecosystem? Also, if you're a female founder and want to share your story, hit me up.

The bottom line: this isn’t just a fairness issue; it’s a missed financial opportunity. If outperforming founders keep getting overlooked because of outdated biases, investors are leaving money on the table. And if you’re an LP backing a fund that keeps missing these bets, maybe you should be asking the hard questions.

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Free Fundraising Resources

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📝 - Playbook for Negotiating Term Sheets - Download it Here

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