E317 | EUVC Awards | Sophie Winwood, co-founder & CEO of WVC:E on diversity in European VC and the underlying causes

Celebrating one of the finalists in the Achievement of the Year category at at this year’s European VC Awards, this episode dives deep with Sophie Winwood, co-founder & CEO of WVC:E and Operating Partner at Foxe Capital.Foxe Capital is a pre-seed and seed VC fund investing in the next generation of FinTech founders across the UK, Europe, and the US. Some of the companies they invested in are Flock, Kaiko, Hometree, Opply, and Ember.Today, we are meeting with Sophie to talk about diversity in European venture capital, Sophie’s journey in VC, and some of the principles that led her to build WVC:E. WVC:E is a community and platform for women in VC. The company seeks to develop highly productive networks to increase the success of diverse investors and founders through frequent local and virtual events and training programs supported by a continuous stream of content and resources. The 950+ member WVC:E community includes GPs, LPs, investors, founders, and women working in tech. If you would like to join the WhatsApp community, let us know here!The flagship Summit, which brings together 400+ women in VC across Europe, is taking place on Oct 7th and 8th in Paris, and early bird tickets are on sale now.Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀Chapters:00:25 Diversity in European Venture02:24 WVCE's Achievement of the Year04:48 The State of Diversity in European VC08:20 Challenges and Underlying Causes10:26 The Role of Role Models and Representation32:15 Parental Leave and Support Systems50:06 Building WVCE: The Journey Begins54:09 Community Success55:36 Expanding the Community01:00:24 Community Design Principles01:08:24 Policy Work and Industry Impact01:11:41 Building a Successful Community01:29:33 Advice for Young People in the Industry01:33:59 Advice for Emerging VCs