Only 2 percent of venture capital worldwide goes to all-female founding teams. It’s a statistic that hasn’t changed for years.
In Episode 119 of Women Disrupting Tech, I speak with Erica van Eeghen (VP Capital, Women in VC NL) and Maud Vermeulen (Golden Egg Check, Women in VC NL) about how to change that number. Instead of waiting for systems to evolve, they build programs, open networks, and challenge how investment decisions get made.
Their work shows that closing the funding gap requires more than capital. It takes changing how VC itself operates.
3 Lessons From This Conversation
Listening to Erica and Maud, I see how they are reshaping venture capital in practice. Three lessons stand out:
Breaking open closed networks.
Ninety percent of VC jobs and deal flow happen off-market. Without access, women remain outsiders. By building networks and transparency tools, Women in VC NL gives female founders and professionals a way in. This is how the gap starts to close.
Reframing how women see risk.
Maud challenges the stereotype that women shy away from risk. What she sees are founders with well-motivated and carefully thought-through propositions. They come prepared, not hesitant.
Changing behavior, not just headcount.
More women at the investment table, more transparency in the investment process, and more collaboration all expand what is seen as fundable and start to unlock venture capital for female founders.
These 3 lessons show that the funding gap is not only about capital. It is about how networks operate, how women are perceived, and how cultures behave. Unless those conditions change, access to funding will remain uneven.
What impressed me most? 👉 Scroll down for the magic moments, practical tips, and my personal reflections or find episode 119 of Women Disrupting Tech on your favorite podcast app.
- 3 Lessons From This Conversation
- Meaningful moments and timestamps
- Magic Moments In The Episode
- Practical career tips for women in VC
- The Episode’s Quote to Remember
- 3 things that changed the way I think
- A Question for You 🤔
- Coming Up On Women Disrupting Tech
- Listen to Episode 119 on Spotify, Apple, or YouTube
- Other ways to amplify the voices of Women Disrupting Tech
- About Erica van Eeghen
- About Maud Vermeulen
- About Women in VC NL
- Events that Women Disrupting Tech Must-Attend
- Closing the Funding Gap
Meaningful moments and timestamps
| Highlight | Timestamp |
|---|---|
| Introduction to Women Disrupting Tech | 02:20 |
| The Journey into Venture Capital | 05:24 |
| Challenges Faced by Women in VC | 08:17 |
| The Gender Gap in Investment Decisions | 11:18 |
| Cultural Barriers in Venture Capital | 14:22 |
| The Importance of Diversity in Investment | 17:09 |
| Education and Training Gaps in VC | 20:22 |
| Creating a Supportive Network for Women | 23:31 |
| The Need for Urgency in Change | 26:27 |
| Conclusion and Future Directions | 29:13 |
| Networking and Transitions in VC | 37:41 |
| Empowering Female Investors through Education | 40:21 |
| Addressing the Funding Gap for Women | 44:49 |
| Challenging Biases in Investment | 49:03 |
| Future Plans for Women in VC | 58:33 |
| Creating a Diverse Investment Landscape | 01:03:20 |
Magic Moments In The Episode
This conversation combines personal experience with systemic critique, showing both the barriers women face in venture capital and the ways they quietly reshape the industry from within. That mix of realism and vision gives our dialogue its power, and these three magical observations:
Busting the Role Model Myth
Erica breaks the myth that role models have to be celebrities. “A role model is just about having something that inspires others and everybody can be a role model.”
Creating Radical Diversity.
When I ask about the share of women in VC boards ten years from now, Erica pauses and asks if I want the realistic answer or the dream answer. Her dream is not just 50 percent representation. It is boards that reflect society in all its diversity. The way she frames it shows both the complexity of the problem and the vision that keeps her motivated.
Highlighting missed opportunities.
Maud observes that more funds are starting to see that they’re leaving money on the table by overlooking diverse deal flow. She frames closing the gap as seizing opportunities others miss, not just doing the right thing. That framing gets results because it speaks to investors in language they understand.
What makes these moments powerful is that they shift the conversation from symbolism to action. Role models, diverse boards, and recognizing missed opportunities are not just inspiring. They are practical levers for closing the gap.
👉 What was your magic moment while listening? Share them in the comments.
Practical career tips for women in VC
Erica and Maud share what it takes to build a career in venture capital, even when the structures are still stacked against you. Three practices stand out:
Seek sponsors, not just mentors.
As Maud explains, a sponsor is someone who truly wants you to succeed and is willing to open doors for you. Sponsors use their reputation to bring you into rooms you could not enter alone.
Build networks to grow visibility and expand opportunities.
Erica notes that networks are not only how deals move, but also where insights about sectors and job opportunities circulate. For women in VC, joining collective efforts like Women in VC NL helps overcome the exclusion of informal circles.
Keep investing in your own education.
Erica points out that classical VC funds rarely provide training budgets. That means professional growth depends on self-financed learning or peer exchange. Initiatives like the Venture Program of Women in VC NL are designed to fill this gap.
These career practices matter because when more women succeed and rise inside VC, they influence which founders are seen as fundable. Supporting women in VC is therefore not only a question of fairness but also a direct way to close the gap.
👉 Know someone who could benefit from these tips? Pass this episode on to show them you care.
The Episode’s Quote to Remember
“A role model is just about having something that inspires others. Everybody can be a role model.”
Erica van Eeghen, VP Capital & Women in VC NL
3 things that changed the way I think
Every episode teaches me something or changes my way of thinking. While listening to Maud and Erica, I realized how systemic the roadblocks for women really are. Here are three of those obstacles.
The VC business model blocks innovation.
Erica notes that classical funds rarely provide training budgets. That made me realize how the 2 and 20 model pushes managers to finance their own learning. It slows knowledge transfer and leaves career growth too dependent on trial and error.
Opacity keeps founders guessing.
Investors often avoid being specific about what they want out of fear of missing out. This lack of clarity makes it harder for founders to target the right VCs and wastes energy on mismatched pitches. The Women in VC gallery shows how transparency can flip this dynamic.
The time has come to act on the call for unbiased tools.
When Maud called out for men to create unbiased evaluation tools, I felt it land as personal advice. This is not just a nice idea for the ecosystem. It is something concrete I can act on in my own work.
My reflections highlight that closing the funding gap requires rethinking how VCs learn, how they evaluate, and how transparent they are willing to be.
Curious to hear it all? 👉 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube.
A Question for You 🤔
Do you believe the work that Erica and Maud are doing will solve the funding gap? And if not, what else is needed to do that?
Let me know your thoughts in the comments or message me directly. I’d love to hear your take.
Coming Up On Women Disrupting Tech
What does it take to build a successful company in tech? Turns out that curiosity can get you pretty far.
In episode 120 of Women Disrupting Tech, Henny Hoekstra is my guest to share how curiosity helped her find her space as a co-owner of the learning platform Pluvo.
But our conversation goes deeper. Henny opens up about imposter syndrome, the challenge of becoming an equal to her former bosses, and how therapy helped her grow as a leader. Her story shows that mental health, curiosity, and courage are just as important as strategy and leadership.
So stay tuned for this and much more on Women Disrupting Tech.
Until the next episode, as always, Keep Being Awesome!
Listen to Episode 119 on Spotify, Apple, or YouTube
How Women In VC NL Close the Funding Gap | Ep. 119 with Erica van Eeghen & Maud Vermeulen – Women Disrupting Tech
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About Erica van Eeghen
Erica van Eeghen is Senior Manager Ventures at VP Capital, where she invests in innovative startups tackling global challenges in biodiversity, climate, and social equality. With over 14 years of experience in international impact finance, she began her career at the Dutch development bank financing financial institutions before moving into venture capital. Erica brings deep expertise at the intersection of impact and investment, and she is also a board member of Women in VC NL, supporting diversity in the venture capital ecosystem.
You can connect with Erica on LinkedIn and learn more about VP Capital on its website.
About Maud Vermeulen
Maud Vermeulen is an Investment Associate at Golden Egg Check, where she scouts and supports high-potential startups and scale-ups. She has built her career around helping entrepreneurs refine their investment strategies and connect with the right capital to grow. Passionate about creating more equal opportunities in the startup ecosystem, Maud combines hands-on support for founders with active involvement in Women in VC NL, where she works to open networks and improve career paths for women in venture capital.
You can connect with Maud on LinkedIn. For more information about Golden Egg Check, you can check their website.
About Women in VC NL
Women in VC NL is a vibrant community dedicated to fostering connections, collaboration, and career growth among women in the venture capital industry in the Netherlands. With a dynamic network of more than 170 professionals, ranging from Analysts to Managing Partners, the initiative works to advance diversity and build a stronger, more inclusive VC ecosystem. Women in VC NL creates programs, knowledge-sharing platforms, and networking opportunities that help members grow while also opening the industry to underrepresented founders.
Make sure you follow Women in VC NL on LinkedIn to discover more about their New Leaf program and other community initiatives.
Events that Women Disrupting Tech Must-Attend
Events are picking up again and I’ve found some cool ones. Below is one event you definitely want to check out. For a full overview of all events, including links to buy tickets, please check the events page.
Diverse Leaders in Tech Events
If you like being in the know about what is happening in the DEI space, Diverse Leaders in Tech is the place to be.
Every last Thursday of the month, they have monthly in-person meetups for tech people, HR leaders and supporters of diversity to exchange insights, tackle challenges, and take action. It’s a vibrant, safe space where diversity is celebrated.
The next meetup (co-hosted by Techleap) is on 25 September. You can register on the DLiT website. Did I mention that joining your first event is free?
Women’s Health In The Workplace
A must-attend event for women and men who want to learn how they can improve productivity and well-being in the workplace.
Date: 1 October 2025
Location: Equals, Amsterdam
Time: 12:00 – 17:00 hours
Tickets: on Eventbrite
FemHealth: women-friendly healthcare in 2040
Hear from the experts on female health what the future of Female Health in the Netherlands should look like.
Date: 7 October 2025
Location: Dauphine, Amsterdam
Time: 15:00 – 18:00 hours
Tickets: on Eventbrite
Closing the Funding Gap
Closing the funding gap is not a matter of waiting for time to fix things. It takes women like Erica van Eeghen and Maud Vermeulen who open networks, challenge stereotypes, and build programs that give others a fair shot.
What I take from this conversation is that progress happens when we change how VC works at its core: how networks open, how decisions are made, and how opportunities are shared. That is how Women in VC NL is changing venture capital, and how the funding gap begins to close.
👉 Listen to the full conversation on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or YouTube.
Women Disrupting Tech | The Podcast 