Eureka! Venture Launches Italy's First Institutional Search Fund

Eureka! Venture, in collaboration with Paolo Guida, has launched the Eta Fund, marking Italy's first institutional search fund. The Eta Fund is a pioneering initiative designed to cultivate an ecosystem supporting search funds, which are still relatively novel in Italy. Paolo Guida, a seasoned investor with extensive international experience in M&A and venture capital, brings his expertise to the project as a partner and key participant in the fund. He is backed by a distinguished group of ambassadors from diverse sectors like legal, M&A due diligence, and business development. Stefano Peroncini, CEO of Eureka! Venture, underscored the potential of search funds in addressing structural economic challenges in Italy by promoting generational turnover in small and medium enterprises (SMEs). These funds allow high-caliber managerial figures to lead SMEs, encouraging their scalability. Andrea Rangone, a professor at Politecnico di Milano, highlighted the necessity of intertwining investment funds with specialized education and current data analysis to accelerate this innovative investment model in Italy. Historically, search funds follow four primary stages: capital raising, target acquisition, management and growth, and eventual exit. In Italy, this model is in its infancy but shows promising signs with increasing numbers of active funds and completed acquisitions. The recent conference at Politecnico di Milano, marking the debut of a dedicated observatory for search funds, reflects their growing significance. The event also saw the introduction of Italy's first educational courses on search funds at the MBA level. This represents a critical step towards integrating this model into Italy's economic fabric.