Social Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Show

Why Female Founders Still Get Less Than 2% of the Funding with David B. Horne

David Horne · September 1, 2026

Entrepreneur · Author · Leadership · TEDX Speakerin

Interview with David Horne

Why Female Founders Still Get Less Than 2% of the Funding with David B. Horne — David Horne

Podcast: Social Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Show

September 1, 2026 · 34 min

In this episode, Dr Faiz speaks with David B. Horne, founder of Add then Multiply and Funding Focus, about why access to capital remains so uneven for female and underrepresented founders.

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Why Female Founders Still Get Less Than 2% of the Funding with David B. Horne
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Key topicsGrowing your business 25x means breaking the rules of organic growthMost entrepreneurs are told that sustainable growth comes from selling more, hiring more people, and waiting patiently for results. But for founders who want to build significant enterprise value, relying solely on organic growth can become the biggest barrier to scaling. David shares how combining funding, acquisitions, and disciplined integration allowed businesses he helped lead to grow from £1 million to nearly £28 million in just three years, and why ambitious founders should start thinking like strategic buyers rather than simply better sellers. Why brilliant female founders are still being overlooked by investorsDespite producing exceptional businesses, female founders continue to receive a disproportionately small share of venture capital investment worldwide. David explores the published data that first sparked his own investigation into this issue, why the problem extends far beyond individual pitch quality, and what investors, female founders, and the wider entrepreneurial ecosystem need to change. Having become a vocal and award-winning ally while advising high-growth companies, he offers practical insights that help founders better navigate fundraising while encouraging a more balanced investment landscape. The finance function isn't there to keep score, it's there to help you winMany founders see finance as something that reports what happened last month, when in reality it should be shaping every major growth decision. As businesses scale, weak financial foundations quietly limit hiring, investment, acquisitions, and ultimately the founder's freedom. Drawing on decades as a CFO who has raised more than £120 million and completed 33 M & A transactions, David explains why finance should become one of the three core pillars supporting every successful business, not an afterthought managed once problems appear. View all topics →

About David Horne

David Horne, podcast guest

Business Growth Strategist | M&A Expert | Author

40+ years International business experience£120M+ Growth funding raised30+ M&A transactions completed£2M–£20M Founder businesses advised by revenue range

David B Horne has spent nearly four decades helping ambitious founders build businesses that don't just grow, they multiply. A Chartered Accountant by background, David has raised more than £120 million in growth capital and completed 33 mergers, acquisitions and exits. He has helped companies scale from startup to market leader through strategic funding, acquisitions, and disciplined financial leadership. Today, as founder of ADD THEN MULTIPLY, he works with entrepreneurs turning over £2–20 million who want to accelerate growth, increase business value, and build companies that can ultimately thrive without them.

Throughout his career, David has served as CFO for listed companies, high-growth businesses, and entrepreneurial ventures, including Daniel Priestley's companies, giving him a front-row seat to what separates businesses that plateau from those that scale exponentially. His proven FACE methodology: Fund, Acquire, Consolidate, Exit shows founders how to move beyond the limits of organic growth and create transformational business value through strategic acquisitions and robust financial foundations.

David is also a passionate advocate for female founders. After being asked a simple question following a speaking engagement: why so little investment reaches women-led businesses, he began researching the issue and uncovered the systemic funding gap that continues to exist across venture capital.

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About this episode

David draws on decades of experience as a CFO, advisor, author, and entrepreneur to explore the structural barriers that shape funding decisions, from investor bias and limited access to networks to the way founders are questioned, assessed, and introduced to capital.

The conversation also explores what makes a founder genuinely fundable, why warm introductions matter, how entrepreneurs should think about bootstrapping and growth, and what needs to change to build a fairer funding system.

A practical and thought-provoking conversation about capital, opportunity, investor behaviour, and the realities behind who gets funded.

For more content, do visit:

Email David: dbh@addthenmultiply.com

David’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-b-horne

Add then Multiply: https://addthenmultiply.com

Funding Focus: https://fundingfocus.co.uk

Get David's book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Add-Then-Multiply-businesses-exponential-ebook/dp/B07V9WYX8S/

David's TEDx Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WeGN2Yp8_fY

Catalyst Now: https://catalystnow.net

AstroX: https://www.angkasawan.org.my

Email Dr Faiz: mfaiz@angkasawan.org.my

Dr Faiz’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gofaiz

Creating positive change, one episode at a time.

This show is sponsored by Faiz Space. https://faizspace.org

Guest: David Horne

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