New program brings capital market access to Reichman University’s female students
'Making Markets' initiative aims to close the gender gap in Israeli finance through direct industry exposure and confidence-building
A new program launched at Reichman University is bringing Israel’s capital market directly to female business students, offering mentorship, industry access, and practical tools aimed at closing the persistent gender gap in Israeli finance.
Called “Making Markets,” the initiative was founded by Noa Israely, a Reichman alumna who holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and a master’s degree in Financial Economics. Israely currently works as an Investment Manager at IBI’s hedge funds.
The program is open to female students at the Arison School of Business and centers on direct, face-to-face meetings with senior women working across Israel’s financial sector, including investment managers, analysts, and traders rather than relying on traditional classroom presentations.
“When I began my career, I didn’t really know where to start or what the investment world looked like from the inside,” Israely said. “It took me a long time to understand the learning paths, the professional development process, and how to break into the field. I wanted to create a framework that would have helped me had I been starting out today.”
Among the topics explored in the program: how investment strategies are constructed, what economic analysis entails, and how financial decision-makers operate in the absence of clear-cut answers.
Israely said the initiative addresses not only a knowledge gap but what she described as a “courage gap”, the question of who feels entitled to ask questions, who believes they belong in a room, and who is willing to claim a seat at the table.
“Public discourse often focuses on knowledge gaps,” she said, “but the real challenge is sometimes confidence.”
For Israely, returning to Reichman to lead the program carries personal significance. She previously participated in the university’s alumni mentoring program after completing her studies, and described her current role as a full-circle moment.
“The university gave me so much and shaped my identity, both professionally and personally,” she said. “I feel genuinely privileged to return from the other side and provide others with the support I once needed.”
The program’s organizers say the strong response from students reflects broader demand: young women in finance are looking for structured entry points into an industry that has historically skewed male. Proponents argue that increasing female representation in capital markets enriches decision-making and improves outcomes across the industry.
Women remain significantly underrepresented in senior financial roles both in Israel and globally, despite years of public discourse around gender equality in the workplace.