Gender equality is a “crucial" driver of business success and a matter of “fundamental fairness” for the pensions and insurance sector, European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) chair, Petra Hielkema, has said.

Speaking at the Corporate Governance, Sustainability & Diversity: Moving Forward conference in Athens (24 January), Hielkema highlighted three "key measures" that could reduce gender disparity in the financial services sector.

The first key measure was for financial institutions to treat diversity as a core governance issue, meaning setting clear targets, measuring progress, and holding leadership accountable for results.

Hielkema also said as insurance and pensions, and the broader financial sectors digitise, the sector will need to upskill and reskill and pay attention to ensuring women are not “left behind”.

She also suggested that incorporating diverse perspectives in product design and risk assessment would lead to better outcomes for all customers.

“If we are serious about achieving greater progress, and not taking decades to do so, we will all need to do our part,” Hielkema added.

“We need regulators, industry leaders, and stakeholders to prioritise gender
diversity and inclusion in order to create lasting change.

“This isn't just about meeting quotas or ticking boxes - it's about building a financial services sector that truly serves everyone.”

Hielkema added that despite Europe’s gender diversity situation being “less bleak” than the global average, progress was still “uneven and insufficient”.

Indeed, she highlighted research that found that women in the EU receive pensions nearly 30 per cent smaller than men, increasing their risk of poverty by 35 per cent.

Hielkema added that this was not just a problem for today but is instead “creating a legacy of inequality that will echo through generations.”

She stressed that pay gaps and pension gaps compound over time and create a “cascade” of financial disadvantages as she said when women earn less, they save less, then invest less.

Hielkema said that considering that life expectancy for women is typically higher than for men this creates real financial vulnerability.

Later in her speech, she said that stepping back from work to care for family, combined with rigid workplace schedules, has created “lasting barriers” for women trying to advance to leadership roles.

“Only one in three board members are women. And only 8 per cent of board chairs are women,” she continued.

“Increasing women’s participation in the economy and ensuring gender balance in leadership roles are powerful ways to address broader gender gaps in our societies and economies.

“The underrepresentation of women has particular significance in our sector. Insurance and pensions, at their core, are about understanding and managing risk for all of society.

“How can we truly achieve this if our leadership does not reflect the diversity of the people we serve? How can we innovate and adapt to emerging risks if we are missing half the talent pool? The answer is simple - we cannot.”

She argued that the aim should be to ensure a balanced representation of men and women at every level and to ensure that it stays that way.

“The future of financial services will be defined by how well we adapt to these challenges," Hielkema stated.

“To develop effective solutions under these pressures, to make better decisions, we need teams that reflect the full spectrum of diversity: across gender, age, cultural background, life experience, and ways of thinking.  

“Diversity in all its forms is not just a nice-to-have. It is necessary for building the resilient, innovative, and trustworthy financial sectors.”

---