Women now account for 18% [1] of all C-suite positions in financial services industries globally. The study further highlights the multiplier effect impact showing that for each woman added to the C-suite, there is a positive and quantifiable impact [2] on the number of women in senior leadership positions just below the C-suite across regions. This underscores the importance of dismantling the glass ceiling and paving the way for greater gender inclusivity.
The financial services industry has made several strides to fast-track inclusion, champion women and remains committed to being a driver of change. 2025’s International Women’s Day theme #AcclerateAction is a call to emphasise the importance of taking swift and decisive steps to achieve gender equality and address systemic barriers and biases that women face.
As part of this IWD 2025 spotlight, The Digital Banker and Global Private Banker aim to recognize senior women leaders from across the world who are accelerating action and making significant contributions toward a more gender-inclusive world.
Today we put the spotlight on Ravenna Long who is an Executive Director and Assistant General Counsel at JPMorgan, based in London. Ravenna joined the bank as an Assistant Vice President in Hong Kong in 2016 and has held a number of different roles within the Technology Practice Group in her nine years with the firm. Ravenna currently leads the firm’s EMEA Technology and IP Legal practice group, as well as the APAC Emerging Technology and Cyber Legal teams. She advises on a range of technology transactions, regulatory implementation programs, and technology projects across both regions.
What are some of the milestone and highlights of your journey that have defined your career and helped you become the leader you are today?
It started with securing my training contract with a prestigious international law firm. I was entering the job market at the peak of the Great Recession and roles were hard to come by. Many law firms had reduced their hiring or deferred places. My friends and I were all anxious about our future and whether we would graduate without a job to look forward to. I was on the summer break at university and was on a walk in Richmond Park in London with my mum and our dogs when the offer came through, and still vividly remember how utterly elated I felt! That first role is what laid the foundations for everything that has come since then.
Being seconded to JPMorgan from that same law firm opened my eyes to the world of financial services and the unique opportunities and challenges faced by in house lawyers. I very quickly realised that I wanted to make the move permanent and was fortunate enough to have a manager at JPMorgan who saw my talent and wanted to make a full-time role for me.
During my early years at JPMorgan, I was the only member of my team based in Hong Kong. This afforded me many opportunities to get involved in complex issues which impacted the Hong Kong location. A particular highlight was being the lead lawyer on a major regulatory exam conducted by the HKMA. I had great exposure to senior leaders within the organisation globally and was able to demonstrate my ability as a trusted advisor. I am sure this was one of the defining projects which set me up for my current role.
In work as in life, timing and luck sometimes play a part. During the peak of COVID in 2021, I was approached by our Practice Group Head about an opportunity in London. The leader of the team there was leaving, and she wanted me to replace him, from Hong Kong, until I could relocate to London, whilst also keeping my APAC role. This to me felt like one of those once in a lifetime opportunity I had to say yes to. The role exposed me to a whole new business, a much larger team to manage, and a new home in London.
Can you share some of the biggest challenges you faced in your journey and how you overcame them?
I consider myself fortunate to work for a company that embeds equality at the heart of its workforce – our GC is a woman, half of our operating committee are female, there are serious contenders to take over Jamie Dimon as CEO who are women. I have never experienced any issues or challenges as a result of my gender.
As a manager, the biggest challenge I have had to face has been managing through performance issues related to members of my team. Managing underperforming employees in a respectful manner, whilst also continuing to give enough time to the rest of your team and focusing on ensuring it does not impact the rest of the team is a huge challenge, and one that nothing really prepares you for. Fortunately, for me, I had four managers (worth calling out that all but one were male) who were (and still are) brilliant managers, leaders and allies who have always treated me with nothing but professional courtesy and respect. They really rallied around to support me and build up my confidence through that process. I learned a huge amount from the experience about humility and grace as a leader.
What are some of the projects and initiatives you have championed to #AccelerateAction for your women colleagues while also driving inclusivity and innovation across the bank?
I lead a team that comprises men and women. I want to be a good manager and leader to all of them and to meet their individual needs of me. I am very aware of the trope that female managers can be difficult to work with, especially for female colleagues that they manage. I use this to challenge myself to always be better. Our firm is brilliant at offering training courses to its managers that cover a wide range of topics, such as team empowerment, performance development, and developing individuals for impact and growth. These are interactive, in-person sessions that I have really benefitted from and that have shaped my leadership style.
The firm itself runs so many different fantastic initiatives to encourage women to think about careers in financial services and pursue higher education in STEM subjects. I have participated in several such initiatives, from casual lunches where we meet with students to talk about our career journeys, to structured challenges where students are asked to solve a business or technical problem and present their findings to a panel of mentors and judges. I am always endlessly impressed (and surprised) by how articulate and confident the current generation of high school students are.
I do what I can to pay it forward. I would not be where I am today without the support of the incredible leaders I have worked for, and their generosity in investing time in my professional development 1:1. I love mentoring the next generation and seeing them succeed, from coaching a university undergraduate through her job applications, to mentoring a young lawyer from her traineeship through to being a newly qualified lawyer. For me personally, driving inclusivity is not just about women: I am also now mentoring a young male colleague who is interested in my field of expertise and considering a pivot into the law. Building up women is only successful if men are also engaged and want to partner with us.
Talk to us about the transformative power of financial inclusion in driving societal and organisational shifts? What role will be emerging technologies play in these shifts?
I am not a finance expert, so I heavily caveat my perspective with that statement, but to my mind financial inclusion is good for business. Financial inclusion can lead to a more stable and more diverse customer base and workforce. When more people have access to financial services, they are better able to manage their finances, leading to fewer defaults and a more reliable flow of money around the economy. Diversity of the workforce can lead to new perspectives, ideas, and opportunities for growth, enhancing the organization’s adaptability and resilience.
By promoting financial inclusion, societies can foster greater social cohesion. When individuals feel economically empowered and included, they are more likely to participate in community activities, contributing to social stability and development.
Financial inclusion can drive innovation as financial institutions develop new products and services to meet the needs of previously underserved markets. Financial inclusion often means leveraging digital technologies to reach underserved populations (mobile payments, anyone?). This can accelerate digital transformation within organizations. As a lawyer advising on technology and having worked through the massive expansion of cloud adoption in financial services, blockchain technologies and digital assets (twice!) and now AI, I have observed the transformative power of technology. It feels fairly accepted now that AI will change the way we all work and restructure the job market. For all of us, that creates an exciting opportunity to reskill or upskill.
What are your predictions for women in banking three years from now?
I tend to be cautious about making predictions as they are almost impossible to get right! Given my areas of practice and to try and help me get my creative juices flowing, I thought I would ask an LLM this question and see what it came up with. I thought it made a decent first attempt, and it has inspired me to pivot this response somewhat to where I hope to see women in banking three years from now:
- Increased Representation in Leadership Roles, with more women in senior leadership positions across all sectors, and not only in fields “traditionally” occupied by women.
- More digital transformation and embracing a growth mindset to embrace change. I feel as though almost every year of my career someone important has expressed the fact that we are in an era of unprecedented change. As technology continues to evolve at pace and building on one of my thoughts elsewhere in this interview, women who invest now in developing skills in fintech, data analytics, or digital banking could see that pay dividends in the coming years.
- Lastly, I would like to see more about partnership between genders. Women’s networking and support systems are absolutely important and should continue to be championed, but I personally have always gained so much more from organisations that embrace and empower all genders.
Footnotes:
1 & 2 Women in financial services leadership, 2023 global update
