The Lord Stevenson of Coddenham CBE
Chairman of HBOS and Governor of the Bank of Scotland

There's an increasing amount of evidence that if you actually are very focused on what is right and you're very efficient at implementing it you can make money and returns. It's deeply insulting to the women on our boards to suggest that they are there because they are woman, because they're not.

Do we think that women are just as much of a resource as men? Yes.

Do we wish to have women customers? Yes.

And if our competitors discriminate passively or actively against women – is it a commercial opportunity? Yes.

Herta von Stiegel
Executive Chairman Stargate Capital Investments Group which managed the trapezia Fund

This is a segment of the market that has been under invested in – that has not been focused on. But we believe is a real, real, emerging opportunity in a developed context. Women led businesses receive less than 2.5% of all venture capital funding. We believe it is imperative that we change this.

Clare Logie
Director of Bank of Scotland HBOS Women

The first Trapezia EIS fund which closed in November '06, the Bank actually placed £2 million directly into that fund to help it launch and we are now looking at helping them to raise money for the second fund and looking at being a cornerstone investor in that second fund as well.