Women in Finance Awards Shortlists Credit Union CEO for Award

Thursday 25 January 2024

Chief Executive of Wave Community Bank, Ann Hickey is shortlisted for the Advocate of the Year award in the Women in Finance Awards.

This award is for a woman working within financial services who is a role model and has gone out of her way to support the cause of getting more women into finance in the last 18 months. As well as examining the initiatives the candidates have pioneered to inspire women to succeed in the industry, judges will also assess their leadership and the initiative’s impact on, and integration with, the business.

Ann said: “I was surprised and delighted that my board and team put me forward for this. It’s great women in credit unions are finally getting recognition among the financial services industry for what we do. As the credit union movement is at the forefront of having women in leadership positions, I’m sure there will be many more nominations for women in credit unions in the future.”

The UK awards, now in their fifth year, will celebrate advocates, role models and allies across the UK’s financial services industry who are working to spearhead real change. By continuing to identify new industry role models, we can inspire students and graduates, build a united community of change-makers, and motivate professionals to continue their work across the finance landscape.

ABCUL collected data on the gender and age make-up of the British credit unions’ memberships, CEOs and boards of directors. The survey received responses from 44 credit unions, representing over 260,000 members collectively. 40 of the responding credit unions gave the gender of their CEO or equivalent (most senior staff member/volunteer), of which 60% were female and 40% male. The female majority is significantly ahead of the rest of the financial services sector for female representation at the most senior job level.

“If you look at some of the brilliant credit unions up and down the country, you’ll see female leaders throughout, providing the stewardship and innovation that is so crucial to our collective success,” says ABCUL President and CEO of Enterprise Credit Union, Karen Bennett.