Mumbai, 21 March 2025: Standard Chartered Bank and Dun & Bradstreet, a global leader in business decisioning data and analytics, today released the first-ever edition of Women Entrepreneurship Optimism Index (WEOI). The composite Women Entrepreneurship Optimism Index for Q4 2024 stood at 68.93 (up by 97 basis points from 67.90 in Q3 2024), indicating that women entrepreneurs had anticipated improved prospects in the last quarter of 2024.
The WEOI has been launched as part of the SC WIN – the Women’s International Network programme of Standard Chartered Bank that supports women-led businesses with funding, cash management, dedicated managers, and a community for supporting them in their growth journey.
This first-of-its-kind index is based on a survey of more than 200 women entrepreneurs across a wide range of industries and cities, and presents effective insights into the outlook, opportunities and challenges faced by women entrepreneurs. It focusses on five key dimensions that shape women entrepreneurs’ confidence: business performance, access to finance, skill development, digital adoption, and support of government policies along with personal and professional networks.
Some of the key findings of the survey are:
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Thriving business confidence among women entrepreneurs can be attributed to the projected increase in domestic orders, which in turn reflects buoyant demand for their products and services in domestic markets.
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Women entrepreneurs in Tier 1 cities were more optimistic than those in Tier 2 cities, especially regarding digital adoption and confidence in their skills.
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Entrepreneurs in health services and those engaged in production of basic and intermediate goods exhibited lower optimism, and those in consumer goods sector seemed to be most optimistic about Q4 2024.
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In Q4 2024, 64% of the women business owners surveyed expressed interest to digitise their business operations – including Financial Management – to modernise processes and improve efficiency.
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With the goal of expanding customer base, they also displayed strong preference towards investing in tech tools, with 70% women entrepreneurs planning to invest more on digital tools and processes for customer acquisition in Q4 2024.
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For growing their business, women business leaders placed topmost importance on leadership and management skills, along with an entrepreneurial mindset.
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There is also a growing demand for government-backed skill development programs and support initiatives, with 2 in every 5 conveying optimism about the value of these resources.
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71% women entrepreneurs did not expect to find access to finance easy.
Launching the WEOI Q4 2024 report, Aditya Mandloi, Managing Director, Head, Wealth and Retail Banking, India and South Asia, Standard Chartered Bank, said, “Women entrepreneurs are a powerful force in India’s business landscape, yet systemic barriers continue to hinder their progress. SC WIN reflects Standard Chartered’s commitment to breaking these barriers by equipping women with the resources and opportunities they need to thrive. The Women Entrepreneurship Optimism Index further reinforces this commitment, providing data-driven insights to shape policies and initiatives that drive meaningful change.”
Avinash Gupta, Managing Director & CEO – India, Dun & Bradstreet, said, “The Women Entrepreneurship Optimism Index is an essential resource for policymakers, financial institutions, and other key players to create strategies that help women entrepreneurs thrive as it pinpoints factors that either boost or hinder growth. The Index is expected to serve as a barometer to gauge the tone and direction in which our women entrepreneurs perceive their business would grow.”
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