Also on the updated list are the City of London Corporation, Banking Standards Board, Goldman Sachs International, Hargreaves Lansdown, The Alternative Investment Management Association, UBS and Visa.

The Big Four are already signed up to the charter, along with most of the major banks, building societies and financial services associations. The Treasury says there are now 2015 firms across the financial services sector covering over 650,000 UK financial services employees who have made the four pledges to promote gender diversity.

These are: having one member of our senior executive team who is responsible and accountable for gender diversity and inclusion; setting internal targets for gender diversity in senior management;  publishing progress annually against these targets in reports on the company website; and having an intention to ensure the pay of the senior executive team is linked to delivery against these internal targets on gender diversity.

The first annual review into the women in finance charter found that more than three-quarters (78%) of the first group of signatories either increased or maintained the proportion of women in senior management in the reporting period.

Since the charter launched, over 85% of the signatories that have set their charter targets have committed to have at least 30% women in senior roles by 2021 and over 25% have committed to a 50/50 gender split in senior roles by 2021.

Women in finance charter list of signatories March 2018 is here.

Report by Pat Sweet