Winterflood is exceptionally proud to have uniquely marked 50 years of women on the trading floor by way of a luncheon within the heart of the City of London, on Thursday 23rd March, at the Plaisterers Hall, in conjunction with the London Stock Exchange and Goodacre UK.

The anniversary offers us and our colleagues, the opportunity to reflect on the history and heritage of our treasured financial services industry, but also opens our minds to consider that it was only 50 years ago that women were truly recognised as part of the UK Trading Fraternity and permitted to join the London Stock Exchange as members.

The luncheon, which had all 300 seats completely sold out, offered clients, companies, and their employees the opportunity to mark this poignant and momentous occasion in financial services history. The event began with guests being offered the opportunity to be interviewed by BBC World Service, during the opening reception. BBC World Service and BBC Radio 4 were keen to mark this ‘moment in time’ landmark, by speaking with some of the pioneers of our time, past, present, and future, who were present in the room.

We were touched to hear the comments of one guest who commented: “We have finally arrived” – celebrating Women in Trading, and what this event meant to them.

During the event, guests enjoyed wonderful footage from the early 1970s which showed the ‘hustle and bustle’ of the LSE Market Floor, as well as some rather amusing but real anecdotes of women surely not being able to join the market floor “as we simply don’t have female lavatories”.

Our very own Stacey Parsons, Head of Fixed Income Strategy, Product & Client at Winterflood, as well as founder and sponsor of the event, opened proceedings. She has been involved in capital markets for over 20 years and has acted as a strong advocate for Women in Trading and Finance.

During her opening speech, Stacey noted, “The sheer number of us in the room today, is a testament to how wonderfully supportive and progressive the financial services industry can be, but we know in our hearts of hearts there is so much more to do.”

Stacey went on to introduce Keynote Speaker, Julia Hoggett, The CEO of the London Stock Exchange who delivered an insightful, tentative, and powerful message, herself a pioneer of our time. “We stand on the shoulders of Giants,” said Julia.

The passion and understanding within the room was truly felt by all attendees, some of who had travelled from Leeds, Liverpool, and further, to be present on this day. One attendee from Redmayne Bentley, shared the amazing story of being a member of the Leeds Stock Exchange in the 1980s, reviving a heritage and history that is all too often forgotten.

In true commemoration of the event and the anniversary, guests were given 50th Anniversary Badges to commemorate, 50 years of Women in Trading, kindly sponsored by the London Stock Exchange.

We were also privileged to be joined by the Rt. Hon Lord Mayor of the City of London, who offered The Freedom of the City of London to the six women traders, in honour of their resilience, ground-breaking careers as the first female traders, and service to the industry. The six women traders featured in the Financial Times this week, in an article covering the first female traders, that was founded and sponsored by Winterflood.

We were proud to support fundraising on the day in combination with Charity Ronald McDonald House Charities, helping to support families, who have children in hospital, with somewhere to stay in a ‘home from home’ environment.

“This is a moment I shall never forget,” remarked one guest upon leaving, a theme echoed by Winterflood guests and our staff in attendance.


A round up of the anniversary in the news this week

‘Perhaps she will not spoil the atmosphere after all’: women mark 50 years trading at the LSE, Financial Times, Tuesday 21st March 2023

Sunday with Michael Portillo, GB News, Sunday 26th March 2023

‘Julia Hoggett, CEO of the London Stock Exchange’, BBC Radio 4: Women’s Hour, Friday 24th March 2023

‘Forget the Big Bang – today is 50 years since another historic day: How women marched in to the stock market bustle’, This is Money, Saturday 25th March 2023

‘LSEG celebrates 50 years of female traders with historic market open’, The Trade, Monday 27th March 2023