AP2’s Female Representation Index for 2020 shows that the proportion of women represented on the boards of companies listed on Nasdaq Stockholm, for the first time since 2013, is down slightly and now amounts to 33.7 (34.0) percent. On the other hand, the proportion of women in executive positions, for the tenth consecutive year, increased and amounted to 24.3 (24.0) percent at the year’s survey. For the first time, more than 10 percent of listed companies’ CEOs are women.

“I hope that this is just one notch in the curve and that the upturn we have seen since 2013 regarding the proportion of woman on the boards continues. But it is also an alarm clock for all nomination committees that the work on diversity must continue to be actively prioritized. However, it is gratifying to see that the proportion of women in executive positions continues to increase steadily, since this is the main recruitment base for board members,” says Eva Halvarsson, CEO of AP2.

“It is interesting to once again note that the nominating committees with women correlate favourably with boards with a higher proportion of women, while boards without nominating committees have a lower proportion of female board members than other companies,” she says.

On the board of primary-listed Large-cap companies, the proportion of women is 40.3 (41.0) percent when the CEO is excluded from the board.

Of the 336 companies in the survey, 257 companies have at least 25 percent women on the board (76.5%). When it is broken down into market value groups, almost 9 out of 10 large cap companies reach the level.

Newly elected women on boards are younger than their male counterparts and female board members have on average a slightly higher number of board assignments than male members.

Background to AP2’s Female Representation Index
AP2 has since 2003 conducted an annual survey with Nordic Investor Services to determine the proportion of women at middle management level, in executive positions and on the boards of listed companies. The survey for 2019 covered 332 primary and secondary listed companies on NASDAQ Stockholm. In addition, the survey records the proportion of women who have graduated from study programmes that constitute the traditional recruitment base for management groups and boards.

For more information, please contact:
Eva Halvarsson, CEO, Andra AP-fonden (AP2), phone +46 (0)31 704 29 00
Ulrika Danielson, Head of Communications & HR, phone +46 (0)709 50 16 13

www.ap2.se

The figures refer to all companies listed on NASDAQ Stockholm, unless otherwise specified.

AP2 is one of five buffer funds within the Swedish pension system and one of northern Europe’s largest pension funds. The Fund’s assets under management total SEK 381.3 billion (31 December 2019), and cover essentially all asset classes across the entire world. We are leading specialists on the Swedish pension system, and we strive to be a world-class asset manager. We are a global leader when it comes to integrating sustainability into our investments, for the benefit of the pension system. The Fund is a long-term, responsible, asset management company. www.ap2.se