• Italian startups raised 487 million euros in capital in the first six months of the year. This figure is just over half of the billion raised in the same period last year, but it is in line with the global downturn. There were 84 deals in total, with 45% of them involving startups from Lombardy.
   
• Biotech remains the most prolific sector, accounting for nearly a fifth of all funding rounds (15.6%). These are followed by medtech, tourism, and services (6.02%), then work, energy, agritech, and edutech at 4.8%. Fintech accounts for 3.6%, while deep tech, delivery, and cybersecurity make up 2.4%.
   
• There were 14 rounds for Italian startups valued at 10 million or more, with the 4 most significant rounds raising a total of around 200 million. In addition to these, as reported yesterday, there was a €4.7 million investment in Jet HR, the highest pre-seed funding ever secured by an Italian startup. This snapshot of the ecosystem was captured at SIOS23 Summer: INSIEME, the summit organized by StartupItalia in collaboration with SACE and Luiss Guido Carli University.

 

 

Rome, June 27, 2023 - Italy is holding steady despite the global decline in startup investments in the first six months of 2023. Italian startups raised approximately 487 million euros from January to June, through a total of 84 deals. This is just under half of the one billion raised in the first six months of last year, which saw 96 deals. The decline in our country is thus in line with the global trend of -51.17% compared to the same period in 2022. 

 

Indeed, the decline in investments isn't limited to our country; it's a global phenomenon. The United Kingdom saw a 57% drop, France a 55% decline, and Germany a 44% decrease. Even outside of Europe, the situation remains the same: investments in the United States and China have dropped by 49%. Several factors explain this decline, including the absence of large deals (over 100 million) and the high level of uncertainty weighing on the global landscape, driven by various factors outside the ecosystem, such as war and inflation. 

 

These are the key findings from the report prepared by StartupItalia and presented at SIOS23 Summer: INSIEME. This summit, organized in collaboration with SACE – the insurance and financial group directly controlled by the Ministry of Economy and Finance – and Luiss Guido Carli University,  brought together for the first time in Rome representatives from the business world, institutions, associations, and academia. The aim was to provide a mid-year update on investments in Italy, the sector’s outlook, and the main emerging trends. 

 

“The Italian ecosystem has managed to withstand the shockwaves of a period marked by objective difficulties, thanks in part to a series of significant funding rounds for startups in highly competitive international sectors such as biotech, medtech, and energy. This confirms the appeal of our ecosystem and the importance it places on a culture of innovation,”  explained Dario Scacchetti, CEO of StartupItalia. “The decline in investments in startups isn't surprising, given that we're seeing a global decrease in investments in the sector across several European countries, as well as in the United States and China. Economic uncertainty stemming from the challenging international environment, such as the conflict in Ukraine and the difficulties that have affected the American and European banking systems in recent months, is weighing heavily. These factors underscore the value of our entrepreneurial ecosystem and confirm the level our innovation sector has reached, with an ever-growing number of players including startups, institutions, universities, incubators, and venture capital funds. This is a sector where innovative SMEs are also starting to play a key role, leading the way in digitalization and experimenting with new technologies. This enables them to expand and compete in new markets, including internationally. We have a growing ecosystem that needs attention from institutions and has the potential to create new jobs. This first edition of SIOS in Rome aimed to broaden our perspective to encompass the entire ecosystem, and we couldn’t have chosen a more iconic location than Rome, a true millennial “center,” to convey this new concept of entrepreneurship.

The state of investment in Italy in the first six months of 2023

After years of growth in the number of rounds and the volume of funds raised, the first six months of 2023 show a clear decline compared to last year. Approximately  487 million euros (487,842,871) in capital was raised from January to June, across a total of 84 deals. This is just under half of the roughly one billion raised in the first six months of last year: 999,146,069 across 96 deals (-51.17%).  

 

The rest of the year is expected to follow the downward trend: according to Atomico’s forecasts, investments in innovation across Europe are likely to reach 51 billion by the end of this year, a 39% drop compared to last year. This represents a 32 billion decrease and about half of the 106 billion raised in Europe in 2021.

 

As in the previous year, investments in biotech were the main driver in the first half of 2023. Of the 84 deals in total, 13 involve startups operating in the biotechnology sector (approximately 15.6%). In second place, also within the medical field, are the five investments in medtech startups, tourism, and services (6.02%). Tied for third place are deals finalized by startups operating in the fields of labor, energy, agritech, and edutech (4.8%). Following that are the three deals closed in the fintech sector (3.6%), as well as investments in deep tech, delivery, new materials, and cybersecurity (2.4%). 

 

Finally, there's a wide variety of investments in unique and highly technical fields like crowdtesting, dubbing, and pipeline maintenance, which make up the “Other” category, accounting for 6.02%. 

 

<p > Looking at the distribution of rounds by region, out of 83 deals, just under half (38) feature startups from Lombardy (45.7%). Piedmont follows with 14 deals (16.8%). Emilia Romagna ranks third in terms of the number of deals, with 8 startups from the region completing rounds (9.6%). Lazio and Tuscany were not among the top three, with 6 deals (7.2%) and 4 deals (4.8%), respectively. Sicily also had 3 deals (3.6%), while Veneto, Puglia, and Trentino-Alto Adige each saw two startups secure funding (2.4%). Finally, there was just one deal each (1.2%) in Campania, Molise, Sardinia, and Liguria. 

 

Equity crowdfunding bucks the trend in investment, with its value doubling overall. According to data from the Crowdinvesting Observatory, from January to May, 75 campaigns were successfully completed, raising a total of 37 million, compared to 18,605 million last year, marking a 49% increase.

 

“The SIOS23 Summer: INSIEME Summit stems from the understanding that integrating academic expertise with the worlds of industry and startups is one of the keys to supporting business innovation processes and strengthening the training of young talent,” says Andrea Prencipe, Rector of Luiss. “In this context, our University has long been at the forefront: we have integrated Open Innovation into the courses offered to students with the “Maire Tecnimont” Chair in Open Innovation & Sustainability, entrusted to the creator of the paradigm, Henry Chesbrough, and we foster open innovation through successful initiatives like Luiss Alumni 4 Growth, the investment club that supports Luiss-related startups with a social benefit approach and currently has 14 young companies in its portfolio, 2 of which are in the exit phase. Furthermore, we have profoundly innovated our teaching models through an inquiry-based approach, encouraging students to tackle real-world problems. We have also launched two new, fully digital master’s degree programs: one in Marketing and the other in Strategic Management.”

Four rounds exceeding 40 million and the highest pre-seed in the history of Italian startups

There were 14 rounds that raised 10 million or more, with the 4 most significant rounds bringing in a total of around 200 million. Bending Spoons leads the rankings: the startup that develops and markets smartphone apps raised 70 million euros.  AAVantgarde Bio, which focuses on developing gene therapies for inherited retinal diseases, received 61 million euros, nine million less. Two Italian startups—Alps Blockchain and Energy Dome—both focused on reducing energy consumption—hit the 40 million mark in 2023. In addition to these, as reported yesterday, Jet HR secured an investment of 4.7 million euros, marking the highest pre-seed funding ever received by an Italian startup. Founded in Milan in early 2023, the startup owns a platform that not only automates payroll processing (the process of preparing, issuing, and filing pay slips), but also supports employers and managers through every stage of their employees’ working lives.

 

“We’re delighted to be part of SIOS2023, the premier event for startups and innovative SMEs. It brings together over 15,000 companies that SACE aims to support in their growth, both in Italy and globally,” said Alessandra Ricci, SACE’s CEO. “For us, being here today means listening to and engaging in dialogue with a segment that’s strategic for our country’s development. Startups are the future of Made in Italy—not only because they will grow and become mature companies, but above all because they are the heart of innovation, an asset that is and will increasingly be the driving force of the economy.” “Those who innovate export more and export better,” Ricci added. In our latest Export Report, presented just a few days ago, we calculated that innovation triples the opportunities for export growth. And considering that exports themselves are a multiplier of growth and opportunity, we’re convinced that #TOGETHER with startups and innovative companies, we can create exponential impacts for all of us.”

 

 

 

 

SIOS23 Summer: INSIEME was created with:

Main partner SACE

In collaboration with LUISS
With support from MAECI

Thanks to Edenred Italia, Intesa Sanpaolo, LVenture Group, and Microsoft

Media partner: InnovUp

Radio partner: Radio 105

Technical partners: Bakeca.it, Cosaporto.it, OBE