Azimut strengthens its partnership with Mamacrowd

Azimut and Mamacrowd announce that they have closed a transaction that has led Azimut to achieve a majority stake in Mamacrowd, the most important Italian equity crowdfunding platform that allows investors to invest in the best Italian startups and SMEs.

Azimut, one of the leading independent asset management operators in Europe, founded in 1989 and active in 17 countries, manages total assets of over 80 billion euros. Azimut has been present for several years in the alternative investment sector, with assets under management in excess of 4.2 billion euro in private market products, with private equity, private credit, venture capital and real assets funds to which retail investors can have access. Through a platform of products and services, Azimut aims to bring private savings closer to SMEs and innovative start-ups, encouraging the injection of liquidity into the real economy to stimulate their growth over time. In particular, Azimut and Mamacrowd have developed, and will continue to develop in the future, highly innovative investment tools that enable them to create value for businesses and private savings.

The agreement finalized provided for a capital increase reserved for Azimut, following which it increased to 50.1% the stake it has held in Mamacrowd since 2013, thus strengthening its presence in the Italian equity crowdfunding sector.

The transaction consolidates the synergies already existing with Azimut; in 2021, in fact, Mamacrowd selected 26 companies that thus had access to the AZ ELTIF - ALIcrowd fund, the first Venture Capital ELTIF product of Azimut Investments S.A. that allows private investors to access the most interesting innovative startups and SMEs, protagonists of Made in Italy industrial and digital technological development. The new agreement aims at enhancing the joint ability to create additional funds to support the best Italian companies, starting with the launch of ALICrowd 2, approved at the end of December by CSSF, the Commision de Surveillance du Secteur Financier, with a funding target of 35 million euros. With ALIcrowd 1 and 2, the Azimut Group consolidates its leadership position in the PIR ELTIF segment in Italy.

Of the 6.2 million Italian companies, 7,000 are high growth technology companies and only 377 are listed, while most require private funding. Mamacrowd allows access to these companies, even with small investments, by all savers oriented to build a portfolio of great potential and aligned with a scenario characterized by continuous technological innovation. The ecosystem that Azimut is developing will make it possible to follow the companies in their various stages of growth and financial needs, and beyond.

Following the agreement, three representatives of Azimut's top management join the Board of Directors of Mamacrowd.

Dario Giudici, CEO of Mamacrowd, said: "The agreement reached with Azimut represents a milestone in the history of Mamacrowd, allowing it to equip itself with important resources that will be allocated to the strengthening of the growth process of our platform, which has already started a development plan for its team, also remotely. In a few years, Mamacrowd has managed to become a leader in Italy in equity crowdfunding with more than 100,000 registered users and a total collection of more than €100 million. The decision of an important industrial partner such as Azimut to increase its commitment to our project is both a significant testimony to the good work done and an excellent basis for further growth and the creation of further synergies in addition to those successfully developed so far".

Gabriele Blei, CEO of the Azimut Group, said: "The strengthening of our partnership with Mamacrowd, with whom we have been working for some time, allows us to diversify and further increase the Azimut Group's presence in fintech. The ability to raise and deploy funds, in about two years, has allowed Azimut to become a key player in private debt with over 1 billion, combining alternative funds and neofinancing, without being a bank. We expect to develop new products with Mamacrowd that will soon be available to our distribution networks, such as the new ALIcrowd 2, to increase exposure to alternative asset classes and generate positive returns for our customers in the medium term".

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Azimut is one of the leading independent groups in Europe operating (since 1989) in the asset management sector. The parent company Azimut Holding S.p.A. has been listed on the Milan Stock Exchange since July 7, 2004 (AZM.IM) and is a member, among others, of the FTSE MIB index. The shareholding structure includes over 2100 managers, financial advisors and employees united in a syndicate that controls approximately 22% of the company. The remainder is free float. The Group includes several companies active in the promotion, management and distribution of financial and insurance products, mainly based in Italy, Luxembourg, Ireland, China (Hong Kong and Shanghai), Monaco, Switzerland, Singapore, Brazil, Mexico, Egypt, Taiwan, Chile, USA, Australia, Turkey and United Arab Emirates. In Italy, Azimut Capital Management Sgr operates in the promotion and management of mutual funds governed by Italian law, in alternative investment funds governed by Italian law, and in the management of investment portfolios on an individual basis on behalf of third parties. In addition, Azimut Capital Management handles the distribution of Group and third-party products through its own network of financial advisors, while Azimut Libera Impresa Sgr handles alternative products. The main foreign companies are Azimut Investments SA (founded in Luxembourg in 1999), which manages the AZ FUND1 and AZ Multi Asset multi-compartment funds, and the Irish company Azimut Life DAC, which offers life insurance products.

Mamacrowd managed by SiamoSoci, is the main Italian equity crowdfunding platform by capital raised. It allows - through a simple process, completely online and supervised by Consob - to become members of startups pre-selected by the network of incubators, promising companies that are already making money with businesses validated by the market. Investors can diversify their investment by creating a portfolio of innovative startups and become partners in companies operating in the fastest growing innovative sectors of the Italian economy

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