ESIL, in partnership with Business Angels Europe (BAE), proudly presented the Golden Aurora Award ceremony. This esteemed event, took place during the Annual Inbound Investors Conference in Belfast, Northern Ireland on September 12th and, celebrated the European Female Business Angel of the Year. It served as a platform to showcase the pivotal role and exceptional value that female investors bring to the startup ecosystem across Europe. 

Highlighting the event was panel discussion organised by BAE, focusing on the topic of “How can scale-ups better position themselves to attract investment from women angel investors?” This engaging panel, moderated by Jenny Tooth OBE, featured all the esteemed Aurora Award nominees. 

The Golden Aurora Award held great significance as the jury carefully selected the most outstanding candidate from a pool of five strong national nominees. Among these nominees were Annegien Blokpoel and Isabel Neves representing the Netherlands and Portugal, Leen Limbourg and Maria Rosa Trolese from Belgium and Italy respectively, and Mirna Marovic from Croatia. 

The expert jury, consisting of four BAE board members and last year’s winner, Mary McKenna, evaluated the national nominees based on various criteria. These include the size and diversity of their portfolio, successful exits and returns, value beyond capital, investment approach (solo or syndicated), involvement in business angel networks, contributions to the local startup ecosystem, focus on impact investing, female entrepreneurship, and international engagement. 

BAE remains deeply committed to addressing the underrepresentation of female investors and its wider impact on entrepreneurship. As a leading advocate and facilitator of female investment in Europe, BAE actively participates in several EU projects. Notable initiatives include ESIL, Empowomen, and WomenInvestEU, all of which have been recently awarded to BAE. These projects aim to foster increased female investment and entrepreneurship throughout Europe by bolstering the number of female business angels and providing them with essential support and extensive networks. 

Additionally, we are thrilled to announce that Annegien Blokpoel was honored with the Golden Aurora Award 2024, recognizing her as Europe’s most influential female business angel. Annegien, founder of the Catalyst Impact Investment Club, has made significant strides in the impact investment space with a focus on female-led startups. 

For more information about the event, please visit: BAE website.