PayPal Holdings and the Women's Funding Network have announced five-year commitments to invest more than $100 million and mobilize $300 million, respectively, in support of efforts to advance gender equality and economic justice around the globe.

Announced at the Generation Equality Forum convened by UN Women and co-hosted by the governments of Mexico and France, PayPal's commitment will support financial inclusion and economic empowerment for women and girls. The company has pledged to deposit $100 million of its capital into investment funds and depository institutions led by or focused on serving women; invest $7 million in partnerships aimed at increasing access to microloans for women entrepreneurs; and contribute $1 million to raise awareness and provide incentives to mobilize donations to civil society organizations that support gender equality through the PayPal Giving Fund. PayPal also will contribute its resources and expertise to Data2X, a collaborative technical and advocacy platform working to improve the availability, quality, and use of gender data to make a practical difference in the lives of women and girls worldwide.

As part of the largest network of women's funds and gender justice funders in the world, WFN members will work to expand existing cross-sector partnerships and mobilize investments and resources to drive progress on economic justice and rights for women and girls in the most impacted communities. WFN's commitment is the second largest pledge from the United States, after one from the federal government.

This week the Bill & Melinda Gates, Ford, and Open Society foundations also announced commitments of $2.1 billion, $420 million, and $100 million, respectively, over five years in support of efforts to advance gender equality globally. The forum's organizers expect the three-day convening to generate a total of $40 billion in new investments, including $17 billion in government commitments.

"Improving the financial health of women is essential to building prosperous and resilient communities. Women make up the overwhelming majority of the world's unbanked and underserved adults, and the economic and social impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have only exacerbated these disparities," said PayPal president and CEO Dan Schulman. "As we work to shape an equitable recovery and an inclusive digital economy, we believe we have a responsibility to help expand the role and participation of women in the financial system and economic growth. With the resources, tools, and technologies now at our disposal, we've never had a greater opportunity to achieve economic equality."

(Photo credit: UN Women/Dzilam Méndez)