Of 130 directors of 17 companies floated on the London Stock Exchange last year, just 15, or 11%, were female, according to Financial News analysis of company IPO filings.

That does not compare well with existing listed companies. Of the directors on the boards of FTSE 100 companies, 20.4% are female, while 15.1% of FTSE 250 boardroom seats are occupied by women, according to a BoardWatch report published by Professional Boards Forum last month.