by HRHQ Editorial Team
Newly released data from Ireland’s Women in Finance Charter show that female leadership rates are improving across financial services among Charter signatories.
The findings are part of the Charter’s Annual Report 2026, which is compiled by the ESRI and financed by the Government of Ireland/Department of Finance. The latest report reveals that female representation in the boardroom, executive committee, senior and middle management levels is trending upwards.
Ireland’s Women in Finance Charter is a joint industry-government initiative launched in 2022. Part of the government’s Ireland for Finance Strategy, the Charter seeks to improve female representation in financial services and on latest count has 104 signatory firms. Banking & Payments Federation of Ireland (BPFI), Insurance Ireland, Financial Services Ireland (FSI) and Irish Funds are founding members and alongside Brokers Ireland and Enterprise Ireland, provide operational and communications support for the Charter’s signatories.
In total, 99 firms contributed to the 2026 annual report, representing more than 71,000 employees, with women making up ~51% of those workers.
The report also asked firms to identify barriers they face in improving female representation at their respective companies.
Supporting the career development of existing employees was identified as crucial for increasing female representation. Internal appointments to managerial positions were more gender balanced (51% female share) than external appointments (44%). Additionally, the actions ranked as most effective by firms were: female career development/ leadership training; sponsorship and mentoring; as well as seeking better gender balance in succession planning.
The gender pay gap remains high, however, with a 16% average wage differential between male and female employees at the firms surveyed in the report.
Among five signatory firms interviewed additionally for the study, childcare infrastructure, both availability and cost, was identified as a significant barrier to female advancement in their sector.
