Fondo Italiano and EIF announce new commitment to Italy

"This agreement will include two areas we have covered in the past – early-stage venture capital, and later-stage private equity," explained Pier Luigi Gilibert (pictured), chief executive of European Investment Fund. "But we will also cover two new areas. Business angels: we are active in this space in four or five other European countries and the results have been positive so we will try it in Italy. The other segment [we will address] is private debt and mini-bonds funds."

Both parties have agreed to invest up to €600m in Italian private equity and private debt funds, including those vehicles dedicated to mini-bonds, across a three- or four-year period. The duo has also earmarked €30m for co-investment alongside business angels, marking the first such commitment from the pair.

The partnership between Fondo Italiano and EIF is not new; in 2011, the pair signed an agreement to commit €100m each to the Italian market. Across a three-year period, the duo went on to commit around €500m to 10 funds, of which €370m went to private equity vehicles and the remainder to venture capital fund managers.

Italian fundraising has picked up significantly this year; according to Dimitri Christopher, head of private equity in Italy for PwC and chairman of the unquote" conference, fundraising levels have risen 160% in the last year alone.

In the private equity space, Fondo Italiano and EIF recently committed to Ambienta's latest vehicle, Ambienta II, which closed on €323.5m earlier this month, surpassing its €300m target. Speaking at yesterday's conference, Nino Tronchetti Provera told delegates the LP base is 51% international – a stark contrast to the previous vehicle, 95% of which was committed by Italian LPs – with 95% of contributions to the latest vehicle coming from institutional investors.

In the venture capital segment, both parties backed United Ventures' maiden vehicle, which closed on €60m in October this year. The fund focuses on early-stage and expansion deals in Europe and North America.

Fondo Italiano has so far made 37 direct investments and 21 commitments to Italian funds. The GP has completed four divestments, with IRRs in excess of 20%, according to Gabriele Cappellini, managing director of Fondo Italiano.

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