The gender gap in the first deal: Equity split among founding teams

Hidenori Takahashi, Yuji Honjo and Masatoshi Kato

Journal of Banking & Finance, 2024, vol. 168, issue C

Abstract: We investigate the gender gap in equity splits among members of founding teams using proprietary survey data on Japanese startups. The results reveal that, on average, female founder chief executive officers (CEOs) own 12 percentage points less equity than male founder CEOs. The gender equity gap is more pronounced in founding teams in which the founder CEO is a woman and the other founding members are men. However, the results vary depending on the founding teams’ characteristics. Notably, the gender equity gap is observed only in teams with individuals belonging to older generations and in teams from regions (prefectures) with great gender inequality. The findings indicate that gender norms influence the gender equity gap.

Keywords: Gender gap; Founder CEO; Founding team; Ownership; Compensation; Gender norms (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: G32 G40 L26 M13 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jbfina:v:168:y:2024:i:c:s0378426624001869

DOI: 10.1016/j.jbankfin.2024.107272

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