Hi {{first_name}},

This month feels a little different. Female x Finance is officially five. And looking back at everything that’s happened since we officially registered FxF, there are a few moments that still make us think: wow, we actually built this.

But before all of that, there was one question we kept hearing:

“How are you going to fill a room with 250 women interested in Finance?”

Everyone asked us that in the lead-up to our first event. Everyone except us. We sold out in five days. Now, most of our events sell out in minutes. So to everyone who said women weren’t interested in Finance: look at your inbox right now. 😉

The idea for FxF actually started much earlier. Mel and I met on the first day of intro camp for our Finance studies. We were surrounded by brilliant, ambitious women — and then we entered the industry and saw who was actually in charge. Mel did an M&A internship where she was the only woman. Then PE, where three out of 15 were women — and the team was proud of that. I couldn’t find my way in at all, so I did what everyone does when they don’t know what they want: strategy consulting.

So we built what we wished had existed. We registered Female x Finance with a very sophisticated business plan: make this super big. It started with Mel, me and a handful of ambassadors talking to anyone who would listen.

And somehow, that turned into some pretty crazy milestones: our first 250-person event, Forbes 30 Under 30, helping 500+ women break into Finance through recruitment, growing from 6,000 community members in 2024 to tens of thousands today, and launching FxF Media.

But if five years have taught us anything, it’s that none of those milestones happened because of us alone.

We’ve always said your network is your net worth, and we understand that more now than we ever did five years ago. Every milestone happened because someone in this community believed in what we were building. You showed up. You told a friend. You forwarded our name into rooms we weren’t in yet. You opened doors for other women without being asked. And you made the hard weeks feel a lot less lonely.

Milestones are worth celebrating. But they mean so much more when you have a crowd to celebrate them with.

Five years ago, we had a registration number and a lot of nerve. Today, we have this community, and exactly the same nerve.

This is just the beginning.

This month we’re in celebration mood! Most of our 5 years celebration events are sold out. But Frankfurt and Milan still have a few spots left, don’t miss out!

We’re also preparing some online events that you won’t want to miss. Stay tuned.

Five years of Female x Finance isn’t only a milestone for us. It’s a collection of thousands of individual milestones: the first job, the career move, the connection that turned into an opportunity, or the decision to give back to the women coming next.

So instead of only looking back at what we’ve achieved, we want to celebrate some of the women who made Female x Finance what it is today.

Autumn has arrived, which means time to put away our summer clothes, go back to a cozy routine and cozy outfits. We have put together things that our team is obsessed with:

Once again, thank you for building this movement with us ❤️

Until next time,

FxF Team