Italian banking giant Mediobanca backs London with £10.4m investment in startups
One of Italy’s largest investment banks Mediobanca has committed €12m (£10.4m) to a joint venture with early stage investor Founders Factory to help scale fintech startups.
The joint venture will build and invest in 35 fintech businesses over the next five years.
Mediobanca’s investment will help underpin a new fintech venture studio accelerator, enabling innovation in financial services by supporting international fintech startups.
Its focus will be on ventures that use advanced technologies, such as blockchain and AI, to innovate in the financial services market.
Under plans announced earlier this year, Mediobanca is attempting to establish itself in the tech space more broadly, in particular by adopting artificial intelligence.
“In recent years we embraced the opportunities that technology has created in the financial sector,” Alberto Nagel, chief executive of Mediobanca, said.
“With this joint venture we will seize new opportunities, further strengthening the Group’s technology ecosystem, also through the adoption of innovative models that will allow us to respond effectively to market expectations,” Nagel continued.
The new investment follows a series of moves in London by Mediobanca. In May, it acquired London-based Arma Partners, Europe’s top adviser to software buyouts, for an undisclosed sum.
Mediobanca has been attempting to expand its presence beyond Italy for a number of years and the acquisition of Arma followed the takeover of Bybrook Capital in 2021.
Founders Factory is a global group for businesses supporting entrepreneurs which has invested in nearly 50 fintech firms.
Chief executive of Founders Factory Henry Lane Fox said: “Combining our venture building capabilities and fintech experience with Mediobanca’s heritage, financial prowess and global ambition creates a powerful platform to back fintech founders”.