Post by Cello Wealth

The US has Melinda Gates. Europe has... silence. I just had lunch with Judith Christina Heikoop - physician turned McKinsey, pharma leader, founder, investor, 50 most Inspiring Women in Tech Europe. Two women, both building something, both obsessed with female empowerment and access to capital. At some point a question about true female role models came up. Quite easy to answer. Melinda Gates. Oprah. Michelle Obama. And right behind them - a few other impressive names. Women whose names signal: capital is serious. Building is serious. Leading is serious. Now, name a European one. At that scale. We sat there. And we struggled... It's not that the women don't exist. So why does nobody (outside the startup world) know their names? Why? Because in the US, women talk about money. On stages, in podcasts, on covers. Oprah talks about her net worth. Sara Blakely posts about her failures. Money is not taboo - it's proof of impact. In Europe? We don't talk about money. And women especially don't. There's a cultural modesty that runs deep. And behind it, a voice that whispers: is it ok to say this out loud? That voice has a name. Imposter syndrome. The European Melinda Gates might already exist. She might be running a fund right now. Maybe not a huge one, but she makes impact. We just don't know her name. So, asking all powerful women in my network: who is the European Melinda Gates? If you know her - drop her name below. We would love to learn about her. #WomenEmpowerment #Leadership #WomenInFinance