Overview
- The DIW Managerinnen-Barometer reports women held 18.6% of board seats at the 200 largest non-financial companies in autumn 2025, a 0.5 percentage-point drop year over year, partly due to more men being appointed.
- The financial sector bucked the trend, with the 100 largest banks nearing 22% women on boards and the 60 biggest insurers topping 21% after roughly one-point gains.
- Women’s share of CEO and chair positions at the 200 largest companies stagnated at 7.3%, unchanged from the prior year.
- A Fidar snapshot as of January 1, 2026 shows DAX companies essentially flat at 39.6% women on supervisory boards and 25.3% on executive boards.
- Covering data from more than 500 firms, the DIW also finds that employees with a woman replacing a man as their direct supervisor adjust perceptions of fair pay, while Fidar urges stronger corporate action or potential legislative tightening.