Annual Summit Day 1: Wednesday November 8, 2023

LAUNCH WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS (WE) FINANCE CODE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

Welcome Remarks

Inez Murray, CEO, Financial Alliance for Women, USA

"The We Finance Code is a unique, successful Public/Private Alliance among authorities and financial institutions"

"One takeaway that is clear from our journey to expand access to finance for women, is that it is made possible through alliances: with local and national governments, with multilaterals, with associations, with universities, and with our own employees and clients"

"To truly close the entrepreneurship gender gap, we need to adopt a data driven approach and have truly informed conversations about needs, and how incentives can be aligned across public and private sectors to make things really happen."

"We do not shy away from the hard-to-solve stuff, we embrace it. This is how we move women’s full economic inclusion forward."

Women Entrepreneurs Finance Code: Overview and Rationale

Rosanna Ruiz, Executive President, Dominican Bankers Association, Dominican Republic

"The financial empowerment of women gives us hope and optimism. Initiatives like this are going to change millions of women's lives."

"We can be all part of the conclusion of this legacy, collective wellness, and social peace. Together we can achieve it."

Rosanna Ruiz, Executive President, Dominican Bankers Association, Dominican Republic

WE Finance Code Dominican Republic Signing Ceremony

SIGNATORIES:

Panel I: WE Finance Code Dominican Republic: National Champions

MODERATOR:
Rosanna Ruiz, President, Dominican Bankers Association

SPEAKERS:
Carlos Delgado Head of Financial Stability and Regulation, Central Bank of the Dominican Republic
Julio Caminero, Indendente, Superintendency of Banks of the Dominican Republic
Mercedes Canalda, President, Banco ADOPEM, Dominican Republic

"Actualmente estamos trabajando en un tablero de indicarores de MIPYMES sesgados por genero… que pueda ser util para las decisiones de todos ustedes de como attender a este segmento."

"Tenemos certeza absoluta de que iniciativas como [el WE-FI Code] cambiaran la vida de las mujeres."

"This is a relational bank, you need to understand and serve the women. It’s her success it’s her progress."

Panel II: WE Finance Code Goes Global

MODERATOR:
Inez Murray, CEO, Financial Alliance for Women, USA

SPEAKERS:
Julie Baker, Head of Enterprise and Climate Engagement, NatWest, UK
Steven Puig, President, Banco BHD, Dominican Republic
Wendy Teleki, Head, Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (WE-Fi), USA

"We started out with 20 founding signatories in the UK and today we have 204 signatories to the Code"

"At the end of the day, we have the data, it’s easy to make a business case. And when you have a business case, this entire initiative becomes something that is sustainable."

“3 key elements (for WE Finance Code): strengthening leadership around financial value-proposition, closing financing gaps for women, and collecting the data and taking action”

“The biggest success we've seen today is encouraging women to set up businesses that can be sustainable and grow. 58,0000 businesses were set up by women in 2019. Last year, 150,000 businesses were set up by women… This progress is much faster than the male counterpart.”

Public Event Closing Remarks

Rachel Robboy, Chief Risk Officer, IDB Invest, USA

“It’s not one entity or one bank, it’s the full ecosystem, both public and private… We need to develop our data and make real progress from moving the signature of the Code into action.”

"Women are good risk. Plain and simple.”

Panel III: Data Driving CVP Design

MODERATOR:
Rebecca Ruf, Executive Vice President of Programs, Financial Alliance for Women, USA

SPEAKERS:
Abiodun Olubitan, Group head Women Banking, Access Bank, Nigeria
Faria Shahid, Head of Affluent Segments, HBL Bank, Pakistan
Luina Rodriguez, Commercial Director of the Central and South Zones, MAPFRE BHD Seguros, Dominican Republic
Marcela Carrasco, Head of Financial Inclusion, Mastercard, LAC

“20% de las mujeres ya manejan sus finanzas usando herramientas tecnológicas, el 23% se sienten muy confiadas en usarlo sus finanzas y hacer sus finanzas a través de del internet y el 27% de las mujeres son primeras en utilizar nuevas herramientas.”

"What women want is the million-dollar question, we don’t always know what that is but we need to keep asking ‘why’ and tailoring the CVP."

"We have broken away from traditional methods of marketing towards digital platforms to cater to women in remote areas."

"At the level of the Dominican Republic, more than 40% on average cannot afford to treat a catastrophic illness. 20% of the world's population does not have the resources to assist in this situation. BHD and Mastercard collaborated to create affordable coverage as a product."

Fireside chat: Supporting High Growth Tech-Enabled Women-Founded Companies

MODERATOR:
Barbara Auricchio, Senior Executive of the Gender, Inclusion and Diversity Management, CAF, Panama

SPEAKERS:
Nathaly Vinueza, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Warmi, Ecuador
Valeria Medinaceli Molina, Co-Founder and CFO, Munay, Bolivia

“En la región de América Latina casi el 40% de las fintechs están fundadas o lideradas por mujeres … igual enfrentan brechas de género que limitan sus oportunidades.”

“In being able to be strategic allies to build and work hand in hand we can achieve great things because, as we always say, we want to transform the lives of women by generating and giving them a better quality of life”

"We have advisors who are very important to the model that we are building. Accelerator programs and awards that we have participated in help us to have a position in this market."

“It’s clear that we need to create more space like this Summit where there is a connection between fintech founders, investors and angel investors to view and position the fintech and enable programs and mentoring.”

"In being able to be strategic allies to build and work hand in hand we can achieve great things because, as we always say, we want to transform the lives of women by generating and giving them a better quality of life."

"It’s necessary to increase the participation of women in the investment sector."

Panel IV: Enabling Women Entrepreneurs Through Innovative NFS Design

MODERATOR:
Karyl Akilian, Director, Marketing and Business Development, Financial Alliance for Women, USA

SPEAKERS:
Chiwala Shichilaba, Entrenchment Manager – Women’s Banking, Stanbic Bank, Zambia
Luz Gomez, Vice President, Latin America & the Caribbean, Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, LAC
Sam Cooper-Gray, Head of Market Strategy and Engagement, Global Business Banking, HSBC, UK

"When we learn what women want to see from their FSPs then we are able to decide which partners to work with. This will allow us to create partnerships that enable cheaper funding, financial literacy and education.”

“We’re serious about taking the long view and understanding our imprint. We measure our usage and engagement, productivity and sales growth, resilience and coping strategies of WSMEs and customer evaluations.”

“Our insights confirmed WSMEs are looking for connection, access to capital, access to supply chain and financial education… We aim to provide access to programs that help and connect women with other women who have already done it.”

“For us to be able to deliver NFS we need to make sure no woman is left behind. That’s why local partnerships and collaborations across Kenya allow us to access women where they are.”

“Our vision is not to be a standalone, Strive is based on partnerships. The power that we have as a company is to help contribute to the ecosystem. There is power in building networks for small businesses.”

“Be really clear on what data you want to track, if it’s not available work towards how you can track it”

Panel V: Inclusive Business Models

MODERATOR:
Marisela Alvarenga, Managing Director, Financial Institutions Division, IDB Invest, USA

SPEAKERS:
Constanza Gorleri, Sustainability Manager, Banco Galicia, Argentina
Fidel Duran, Chief Executive Officer, Banco Solidario, Ecuador
Leticia Robles de las Fuentes, Vice President, Corporate Affairs, Konfío, Mexico

“We are proud to say we have 62% of women employees, 45% women in management positions, almost 60% of new employees are women & 70% of promotions are women.”

"The women-led businesses that received credit from Konfio grew their sales 40% more than the group that did not"

"In Argentina, women represents more than half of the population - 45 million people total - but in terms of economic representation, there is a 20% gap. There is an opportunity there to help serve: SMEs generate 65% of job positions & 50% of SMEs are women but financing is insufficient."

"When women have access to funding they empower themselves, promote more entrepreneurs, and there is more economic development. There is an improvement in well-being at home and a social benefit."

“Serving the needs of women around the world makes simple business sense. It’s growth economics.”