Italian Founders Fund

Italy
Seed
Share

About Italian Founders Fund

Italy-focused Startups, B2B, SaaS, GenAI, Consumer focused fund

Investment Focus

Location / RegionItaly
Funding StageSeed
Industry Focus
Ai Ml
Consumer Commerce
Enterprise Software
Saas

Investor Signals Profile

active

Sweet Spot

Italian-rooted B2B SaaS founders with global scale ambition

Italian DNA founders
Pre-Seed to Series A
B2B SaaS
global ambition from Italy
founder-backed VC

Bullish Signals

15+ portfolio cos across Pre-Seed–Series Aexternal
Italy's first founder-backed VCexternal
LPs: Bending Spoons, King, Scalapay foundersexternal
€250k–€3m initial tickets, leads roundsexternal
EiR program generates proprietary dealflowexternal
Team active on ecosystem media (Vento pod)linkedin
Vento pod repost signals active brand buildinglinkedin

Contrarian Signals

Italy-only focus limits market sizeexternal
Network-gated: Italian roots requiredexternal
Managed by SGR — regulatory overheadexternal
Ecosystem immaturity acknowledged by teamlinkedin
No unicorn founder density in Italy yetlinkedin

Founder Do's

Have Italian roots or global Italian DNA
Show unlimited ambition and global mindset
Be extremely transparent with investors
Embrace failure and fast iteration
Spend time in London/NY/SF to calibrate 'great'

Founder Don'ts

Pitch without clear global ambition
Avoid transparency or hide weaknesses
Expect passive capital only

Key GPs & Partners

LF
Lorenzo Franzi
Partner
founder-firstoperatorItaly-focused
IM
Irene Mingozzi
Partner
founder-firstoperatorItaly-focused
VB
Virginia Bassano
Principal
early-stageanalyticalecosystem-builder
AO
Ascanio Orombelli
Senior Investment Manager
deal-sourcingearly-stage

Unlock Investor Signals

$29/month for full signal access. Cancel anytime.

Fund Overview

Fund Size€30M
Saves0

Key People

Lorenzo Franzi, Irene Mingozzi

Lorenzo FranziPartner
Irene MingozziPartner
Virginia BassanoPrincipal
Ascanio OrombelliSenior Investment Manager

Related Funds

Step Fund I

€30M
Italy
Pre Seed
Ai Ml, Digital Health, Enterprise Software, Fintech
Fund Manager:Andrea Galluzzo
Pre Seed
Ai Ml
Digital Health
Enterprise Software
Fintech

360 Capital Poli360 2

€85M
Italy
Seed
Deep Tech, Robotics Automation, Semiconductors, Ai Ml, Energy Tech, Circular Economy
Fund Manager:360 Capital
Seed
Deep Tech
Robotics Automation
Semiconductors
Ai Ml
Energy Tech
Circular Economy

Ambienta Small Cap Strategy I

€500M
Italy
Series A
Ecommerce, Deep Tech, Climate Sustainability, Ai Ml, Saas
Fund Manager:Francesco Lodrini, Yann Bak, Giacomo Forti
Series A
Ecommerce
Deep Tech
Climate Sustainability
Ai Ml
Saas