A new label to help more women invest: RYSE kicks off €1 million crowdfunding effort

RYSE, a Paris-based certification company that wants to use AI to judge financial institutions against women-inclusive investment criteria, is trying to raise at least €1 million from its initial crowdfunding campaign, due to begin December 15/16.

The crowd funds are being earmarked to deliver the first iteration of RYSE's automated certification process. RYSE expects to open the campaign on December 15 through crowdfunding portal Proximea; universal subscriptions will be accepted from the following day.

RYSE is trying to address the vast gender discrepancy across asset classes. Its figures indicate less than a third of women feel empowered to make investments, and that makes it more challenging to accrue wealth before retirement, with four in five left with "less favourable" pension pots than men.

The French startup estimates there may be up to €3.1 trillion of idle savings held by women just now. In France alone, it believes a €6 billion economic uplift would be achieved if at least 1% of those savings were injected into "the productive economic circuit."

RYSE is expecting to be ready to launch in France in the second quarter next year, with a Europe-wide rollout due before 2023-end and further afield from 2024 onwards. The company aims to generate a €1 million turnover in 2023, rising to €5 million within two years.

Company CEO Paloma Castro argues the AI-driven technology will prove to be the "missing link" in realising women's investment potential. There's a compelling impact case also, Castro says, as social and economic goals are key justifications for investment for most women under the age of 40.

"RYSE is the missing link between the immense investment potential of women and the interest of financial institutions in integrating new standards of inclusiveness," Castro said.

Proximea's president, Alexandre Toussaint, added: "We are totally in line with RYSE's convictions and values, and we are proud to be able to support them in this crowdfunding operation. 

"We want to unite a large community of Ambassadors in order to build inclusive finance together. Accessible from €1,000, our desire is to help strengthen women's commitment to financing the real economy.”