A new report has found that 75% of LGBTQ+ founders in the UK tech industry and 80% of investors don’t feel safe sharing their gender and sexual identity with their peers.
The Proud Ventures founder identity report found that nearly half (45%) of LGBTQ+ founders thought their identity was unrelated, gave them a disadvantage (27%) or that it would damage any fundraising attempts (18%).
Henry Lane-Fox, co-founder and CEO, Founders Factory, said: “Recent research has shown us that concealment is a real tax on LGBTQ+ people. Academic studies have found increased concealment comes at a cost to an individual’s wellbeing with a greater risk of depression, anxiety, and poorer cognitive and physical health.”
It also found that 79% of LGBTQ+ venture capital (VC) firm investors did not disclose their identities to their work colleagues, with 26% stating that they would never share with fellow investors....