ABN AMRO wins award for its private banking services for women at the Global Private Bank awards

The award was formally accepted at a reception in London by Alen Zeljkovic, Managing Director Wealth Management Clients at ABN AMRO. According to Chantal Korteweg, Director of Inclusive Banking, winning the award is a recognition of efforts going back many years by women within the industry. “Financial products, services and information about them are often developed from a male perspective. Research shows that when it comes to investment, for example, that the underrepresentation of women both as clients and employees isn’t because women don’t have an affinity with investing. It’s because they don’t have an affinity with financial service providers.”

In recent years, we have done much to put that right. In early 2022, in collaboration with McKinsey and Better Future, we published 'The importance of inclusivity in financial services'. This research provided insights into the barriers different groups of women experience regarding financial services. 67 percent of women globally feel that their financial advisor does not understand or want to serve them.

Based on these insights, ABN AMRO’s Wealth Management — ABN AMRO MeesPierson in the Netherlands, Bethmann Bank in Germany, ABN AMRO Private Banking in Belgium and Neuflize OBC in France — began working on making our financial services more inclusive and accessible with a range of new and strengthened initiatives. For example The Guide, a documentary portraying top businesswomen exchanging tips and experiences, and the Women Entrepreneur’s Community, events during which we bring women and our experts together to share experiences, break down barriers, and help each other move forward. Both initiatives been developed in response to a particular need identified amongst women entrepreneurs to learn from their peers and role models. 

Other initiatives include the Female Entrepreneur Poll, investment workshops and bootcamps for women. We have brought together hundreds of women to discuss the importance of investing and wealth accumulation.  As well as a wide range of articles, columns, podcasts and special editions for women on areas such as asset management. Our communication, like the magazine Vrouw en Vermogen, has been adapted in a way that appeals to women. It contributes to show how female entrepreneurs are able to achieve success. Women start building wealth consciously and confidently.

Employee training, too, goes beyond traditional gender bias sessions to look at what bankers can do better and differently to make ABN AMRO’s services more inclusive.

At the same time as presenting the report in 2022, we are the first bank in the Netherlands to set up a department (inclusive banking) that views our total services through an inclusion lens and looks for improvements that make financial expertise and services more accessible to customers and society.

This award is confirmation that, with these and other initiatives, we are really on the right track. Or as the award jury themselves put it:

Professional Wealth Management (PWM) magazine is a publication of the Financial Times Group. Launched in 2009, the Global Private Banking Awards aim to gather qualitative and quantitative information from private banking groups to be able to give a set of awards for excellence.

The submissions are judged by an expert panel of fifteen industry professionals based in North America, Asia, and Europe. 

Read the full research report: The value of inclusivity in banking .

Also read: The Guide – by female entrepreneurs and Vrouw en Vermogen.