Fasanara targets USD 110m first close for new fund by year-end

Fasanara Ventures III, which was launched three months ago and has a USD 350m target, has already received USD 60m in commitments. It is targeting a second and final close during the first half of next year, Filia said.

The London-based alternative asset management company, which has more than USD 4bn in total assets under management, is in talks with investors including pension funds, insurance companies and banks, Filia said. It is speaking with primarily US-based investors and expects a small portion of the capital to come from family offices, he added.

The fund is structured in such a way to allow LPs the flexibility to invest across the entire vehicle or only in assets in their preferred sectors, the executive said.

Investments
Fund III targets significant minority stakes in fintech, blockchain, cryptocurrency and web3 startups, Filia said. It has already completed its first investment in Florida-based Scuti, a digital shopping platform for video gamers, he said.

The firm expects to participate in pre-seed, seed or Series A-stage funding rounds with USD 1m-USD 15m equity tickets, Filia said. It plans to back 35-50 companies with the new fund, with full deployment expected within two years, targeting an eventual return of at least 5x, he added.

Around half of the fund will be invested in European companies, while the rest will be split between the US and the rest of the world, Filia said.

Founded in 2011, Fasanara is an asset manager and hedge fund that uses technology to create portfolios of digital lending assets and allow institutional clients, including pension funds, banks and insurance firms, as well as high net-worth individuals to invest in fintech products.

Its investment products include digital consumer and corporate loans, cryptocurrencies and blockchain assets. The goal is to create a "bond-replica" portfolio that offers higher yields and lower volatility than traditional corporate bonds currently offer, Filia said.

Fasanara launched its first venture capital fund in 2019 and its second two years later, he said. The two funds, which have backed more than 120 companies, were initially worth a combined USD 100m but its value has since quadrupled thanks to investments in companies including Italy’s Scalapay, Germany’s Grover and UK-based Lendable, he added.

Around 80 of Fasanara’s 200 employees work in its technology team, Filia said. Besides its London HQ, the firm an office in Milan and a further three in undisclosed emerging markets, he noted.

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