Italian fintech startup UCapital24 listed yesterday on the Aim Italia market after having raised 2,5 million euros from investors and cashed in a 1.5 million euro debt-equity swap (see here a previous post by BeBeez). UCapital24, a global financial social network and social trading platform, was placed in ipo at 4 euros per share equivalent to an 11.4 million euros market capitalization with a floating 19.67% capital. In its first day of trading the company closed at 4.03 euros per share after having touched a maximum at 4,3 euros and a minimum at 3.91 euros (see here a previous post by BeBeez).Investors in the private placement will get one warrant for each share. Board members, employees and consultants will get up to 220,600 warrants for a swap ratio of two warrants for one share. Before the listing, UCapital belonged to the founder Gianmaria Feleppa (85%), the software house company Vetrya (12.5%), and pre-ipo investment veichle 4Media (2.5%). The company foresees to generate revenues of 2.3 million in 2020.
Alessandra Todde, the under-secretary of the Italian Ministry of Economic Development (MISE), said that the Italian Nationl Fund for Innovation (FNI) will act according to the rules that Invitalia Venture will set (see here a previous post by BeBeez). Todde responded to an official interrogation of Italian MP Mattia Mor (Italia Viva party). The MISE previously said that Cassa Depositi e Prestiti will manage FNI which will launch several venture capital funds of funds or investor in innovative startups and SMEs (readers of BeBeez News Premium can download the last BeBeez Venture Capital Report 2019 here, find out here how to subscribe for just 20 euros per month).
Berlin fintech Acatus raised a 5.5 million euros series A round, that DIP (Disruption Investment Platform) Capital and Coparion led (see here a previous post by BeBeez). Business angels, the current company’s shareholders (Daniel Wigbers, Marie Louise Seelig), French venture capital Partech, Germany’s Berliner Volksbank Ventures, and German B2B fintech platform Berliner Effektengesellschaft joined the round as well. Acatus makes securitizations of illiquid assets and place them as bonds. DIP Capital is active in Italy, France, Spain, and the UK. Riccardo Cirillo founded DIP in 2017. UK Platina Partners sponsors DIP whose first fund DIP Fund I raised 40 million British Pounds.
Cesynt Advanced Solutions exceeded in a few hours the fundraising targets for the equity crowdfunding campaing that launched on Opstart for e-learning company iSkilled  (see here a previous post by BeBeez). Cesynt launched the campaign on 29 October and raised 0.43 million euros ahead of a 0.25 million target. The campaign will last for a further month in view of raising the upper target of 1 million and list on Paris Euronext with a crowdlisting procedure. Those who will subscribe the campaign on Opstart by 20 November will have shares on the ground of a pre-money value of 7.2 million instead of 9 million. Armando Miele founded Cesynt and in June 2018 raised 0.25 million on Opstart and paid dividends for a total of 50,000 euros. Italy’s investor Innovative-RFK (i-RFK) poured resources in Cesynt (see here a previous post by BeBeez). However, i-RFK is carrying on a crowdlisting as well. In September 2019, the company raised 2.5 million for 23.5% of its equity through a campaign on Milan-listed CrowdFundMe. The company attracted resources of more than 70 investors who poured at least 20,000 euros (35,000 on average) in the asset on the ground of a pre-money value of 8 million. Paolo Pescetto, Massimo Laccisaglia, and Andrea Rossotti founded i-RFK in 2017
On 12 November, Stefania Peveraro, the chief editor of BeBeez, moderated the panel that took place at Dartmouth House in Mayfair on the side-lines of the fourth edition of London’s Made in Italy 2.0.2.0 (See here a previous post by BeBeez). Italian-English incubator iStarter, whose ceo is Simone Cimminelli, launched the event and eight Italian scaleups that are looking for funding met about 70 international venture capital funds such as Accel, Sweet Capital, Idinvest, Frog Capital, Balterdon, Nauta Capital. The following eight startups set targeting investment rounds for a total of above 60 million euros:
- App Quality, a platform for launching bug-free B2C testing campaigns that Luca Manara, Edoardo Vannutelli, and Filippo Renga founded, aims to raise 3 millions. App Quality has sales of 0.92 million (0.542 million yoy). In October 2017, the company raised 0.4 million from Italian Angels for Growth, Club degli Investitori, Club Italia Investimenti 2, and Digital360
- Beaconforce, a Saas platform that provides tools for supporting HR, did not disclose its fundraising targets. However, rumours say that the company launched a 6 million round. Luca Rosetti founded the company in San Franciso and funds from Sequitur Capital in June 2019 and from Gellify in February 2018Â
- Entando, a California-based platform that has Italian co-founders and provides cloud-native applications for corporates, set a 15 million fundraising target. At the end of October Vertis and Gellify poured resources in the business
- , provides VR applications for online commerce and raised 0.4 million from Italian Angels for Growth in May 2019. The company aims to raise 8 million while it has sales of 1.8 million
- RocketBaby, a digital native brand for childhood premium items with an annual growth of 100% aims to raise 3 million in order to expand abroad its activities.
- Soul-K (fka Soul Kitchen), a B2B foodtech scaleup and a provider of management tools for the HO.RE.CA. and big distribution sectors that in early June 2019 raised a bridge round of 1.6 million from Innogest and Tan Food, who in February 2018 poured 2 million in the business. Soul-K aims to raise 12 millions.
- Swanscan, the first Italian cybersecurity firm to have its own platform for cybersecurity testing and cybersecurity research unit. ECSO (European Cyber Security Organisation) awarded the company as excellence. In May 2016, Swascan raised 0.6 million from Key Capital who now has a 20% stake. The company currently aims to raise 5 millions.
- Treedom, a Florence-based website that allows companies and individuals to plant trees, launched an investment round of 8 millions. Treedom opened bureaus in Germany and the UK and in April 2017 raised 2.45 million from Ersel, Antonello Manuli Holding, Rancilio Cube, U-Start Club, Sella Ventures, and other private investors.
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