The government is to review unfair obstacles faced by female entrepreneurs when growing a business.
Robert Jenrick, exchequer secretary to the Treasury, said Britain was home to many innovative businesses but few were started by women.
In a move to identify and overcome any barriers women might face, the government launched a review on Friday (21 September), the findings of which will be published early next year.
The review will be lead by Alison Rose, chief executive of RBS commercial and private banking
Mr Jenrick said: "It is vital that we identify the barriers that are hampering entrepreneurial women from securing the backing that businessmen have taken for granted."
He said Ms Rose’s experience in investment banking would help "level the playing field and empower more talent in the economy".
Ms Rose said no-one should be left behind if the UK wants to strengthen its position as a place to start and grow a business.
She said: "Unfortunately, statistics show that women make up only a third of all entrepreneurs in the UK - to better drive the UK’s economy, we need to understand, and tackle, the barriers and reasons as to why this is - more can be done to support women in enterprise.
"I am looking forward to working with the Treasury on this important initiative."
The government said women were half as likely as men to start a business in the UK, leading to a mere one in five small and medium sized enterprises being female-led.
The review is expected to consider the drivers of disparity in male and female entrepreneurship and any actions that could reduce existing barriers to female engagement.
It will also address any disparities between female-led and male-led firms seeking and receiving external finance and examples of best-practice to be adopted by investors and financial services firms seeking to avoid gender-bias in their investment decisions.
Marlene Outrim, founder and managing director at UNIQ Family Wealth, welcomed the review but said identifying obstacles and implementing rules and conditions was only part of the solution.
She said: "A culture change is needed and how that can be managed and attitudes changed is the big issue.
"Some attitudes towards women are so ingrained that people do not think they exist and cannot see the issues - it is something I have lived with my whole career in a male dominated industry."
The government is due to consider and respond to the report’s findings next year.
rachel.addison@ft.com
