Principal® Joins Women’s Bank As Mission Partner

Principal® – As a Mission Partner, Principal Financial Group® is pleased to help First Women’s Bank (FWB) by providing funding to promote the expansion of women-owned companies.

According to Dan Houston, chairman, president, and CEO of Principal, “Principal® is devoted to placing financial security within reach of more people, with a history of working with small and midsized organizations.” We are thrilled to partner with First Women’s Bank, a company that shares our vision for a more economically inclusive and sustainable world, because “vibrant and prosperous businesses promote economically vibrant communities.”

This announcement is the latest in Principal’s pledge to double the number of small and midsized businesses owned by women and people of colour that it supports through product access, community development, and financial education.

Amy Friedrich, president of U.S. Insurance Solutions at Principal, stated: “We know from our research that women report having less access to financial products, tools, services, and safeguards than men1. “This unequal access applies to female-led entrepreneurs seeking funding to launch or expand their businesses2. By encouraging female entrepreneurs, the global economy can grow. 3 We’re thrilled to collaborate with First Women’s Bank to eliminate this gap and increase the amount of resources available to female business owners.

Principal Financial Group

FWB is a pioneering bank with the goal of boosting the economy and the status of women in it. Through mission deposits and loan initiatives that help increase economic opportunity for the women’s economy and women-owned enterprises, FWB Mission Partners provide financial support to the bank.

The president and CEO of First Women’s Bank, Marianne Markowitz, stated, “We believe that the potential for First Women’s Bank to effect social change and reduce the gender loan gap is huge, and we draw great strength in that effort from mission-aligned partners like Principal Financial Group. Principal is aware of how important equal access to money is for creating a prosperous, inclusive economy.

Through FDIC-insured mission deposits and loan initiatives that will aid in increasing economic opportunities for the women’s economy and women-owned enterprises, FWB Mission Partners provide financial support to the Bank.

1 As per the Principal Financial Group-sponsored 2022 Global Financial Inclusion Index

2 According to the majority report of the U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, “21st Century Barriers to Women’s Entrepreneurship,”

3 Want to Grow the Global Economy by $5 Trillion? Here’s How, says Boston Consulting Group. Encourage female entrepreneurs.