The Italian impact fund, which focuses on high-growth companies in the health and wellbeing sectors, is aiming to double its fundraising target next year.
Kyip Impact Mission (KIM), an impact fund owned by independent Italian fund management company Kyip Capital, has announced its first close after raising €30m. The fund, which focuses on investments in firms active in health, nutrition, preventive care and the promotion of healthy and sustainable lifestyles, is aiming to raise a total of €60m by mid-2025.
KIM plans to invest between €3m and €7m in minority stakes of healthcare and wellbeing companies with sales of between €5m and €50m. Kyip Capital said it had the backing of Fondo Italiano d’Investimento, an Italian family office, as cornerstone investor, while several “well-known” Italian entrepreneurs with a wealth of experience in the health and wellbeing sector also invested.
Luigi Tommasini, head of funds of funds and strategic initiatives at Fondo Italiano d’Investimento, said the new impact fund was “a tangible example” of how his organisation, through FOF Impact, which is the first fund of funds focused on impact investing in Italy, is “fostering the development of impact investments in Italy”.
Tommasini said Fondo Italiano d’Investimento had helped out with the emergence of new teams, the launch of new funds as well as “the attraction of institutional capital towards this type of initiative that combines financial return with social and environmental impact”.
Early mover advantage
Kyip Capital has “always believed that innovation and sustainability are essential elements in value creation”, said Luciano Hassan, president and founding partner. Hassan said he is expecting a “natural long-term convergence between so-called traditional and impact strategies in private equity”.
He added that he was “confident that being among the early movers in this asset class in Italy will yield excellent returns for our investors, while further strengthening our expertise in sustainability and positioning us at the forefront of this sector”.
Milan, Italy-based Kyip Capital has assets under management of over €190m. In addition to its impact fund, it also manages the Kyip Investment Fund, which is dedicated to growth buy-out operations of Italian SMEs with a focus on information technology and education.