Finance firms make progress on equality
Female representation at senior roles in financial-services firms has “increased substantially” over the past three years, according to a report.
Created in 2022, Ireland’s Women in Finance Charter now has more than 100 signatories, who employ more than 72,000 workers.
The project’s third annual report, compiled by the ESRI, shows that women now account for just over 43% of senior management amongst signatory firms, compared with 36% when firms signed up.
Compared with baseline levels when firms first signed up to the initiative, marked increases have been seen at:
- Board level, where average female representation is 36% (30% when firms signed up),
- Senior management (43%, compared with 36%), and
- Chief-executive level (23%, compared with 19%).
Of firms reporting in 2025, just over half signed up in 2022, almost a quarter in 2023, and almost a quarter last year.
Middle-management fall
Female representation has reached 50% of all employees in signatory firms – a marginal increase from the previous year (49.3%).
The report notes that, while there has been a marked increase in female participation at senior level, the level of female participation at junior management and technical or professional roles remained static at 49%.
There was a marginal decrease in the female share of middle-management positions, falling from 47.6% to 47.1% as of January 2025.
Barriers to equal female representation reported by firms include low turnover rates in senior positions, fewer female job applicants, the specificity of key skills and experience required, and childcare costs and availability.