Tuesday's Headlines: The already low number of women in banking shrinks

The disappointingly low number of women in the top ranks of finance is actually shrinking, according to Reuters. Women made up just 15.3 percent of executive and senior level managers in investment banking and securities in 2009, down from 16.4 percent in 2008 and 17.8 percent in 2007.

Insiders blame a small hiring pool and the challenges of balancing such positions with a family, which disproportionally falls on women. "Women clearly have a disadvantage in that if they want children, they have to take time off. That's hard to do while proving to a demanding boss they can return to their job to work punishing and unpredictable hours," the article states.

Other news:

Hedge funds attracted inflows of $34.9 billion in February, the heaviest on record. [Barron's]

U.S. banks including JPMorgan and BofA are expected to report weak revenue for the first quarter after industry lending dropped across categories. [Bloomberg]

BNY Mellon's Robert Kelly is the only finance executive to make CNN's "20 highest-paid CEOs" list. [CNN Money]

Citi plans to sell EMI to a single buyer. [NY Post]

Lloyds faces political pressure to sell off its retail business. [Financial Times]

A hedge fund that will use Twitter feeds has delayed its launch citing investor demand. [HFN]

More than 400 people have applied for Fertilemind Capital's "The Apprentice" style competition for analyst positions. [HFN]