The Green Transition Fund - PNRR is an instrument to stimulate the growth of an innovation ecosystem in green transition sectors through venture capital investments.

For the purposes of the Invitation to submit proposals for this Fund,“target companies” are defined as:

1. Start-ups with high development potential, with particular attention to SMEs (as per Recommendation 361 of May 8, 2003) in the supply chains of the digital transition, that are carrying out innovative projects;
2. Start-ups and small and medium-sized enterprises that were established through a corporate spin-off or as a result of the sale of a company or a business unit by a large enterprise or a mid-cap company, or that were established with the investment of a large enterprise or a mid-cap company in a venture-building perspective;
3. Holding companies that cumulatively (i) have their legal headquarters in a country other than Italy and control (pursuant to Art. 2359, co. 1, n. 1, of the Civil Code) one of the companies mentioned above, and (ii) effectively conduct their business or have development plans in Italy. In this case, it is specified that the resources invested by the Fund must be employed by the eligible companies in Italy, and the intellectual property developed in Italy must remain in Italy.

It should be noted that the fact that a target company does not qualify as an "innovative startup" or "innovative SME" is not an obstacle to investment by the Fund, subject to the competent governance bodies of the SGR (Asset Management Company) checking that the company's business/development projects matches the Fund's areas of interest.

Investment opportunities must meet the following criteria to proceed with selection:

1. They must involve start-ups with high growth potential, with particular attention to SMEs in the green transition supply chains and SMEs carrying out innovative projects, including small and medium-sized enterprises born from spin-offs of large enterprises characterized by a significant degree of scalability;
2. They must concern the green technology sector, focusing on investments aimed at promoting the green transition, particularly in the areas of renewable energy use, circular economy, sustainable mobility, energy efficiency, waste management, energy storage, or other areas related to the ecological transition;
3. They must comply with the technical guidelines on the application of the Do No Significant Harm (DNSH) principle. In order to ensure compliance with the DNSH principle, only projects involving activities that conform to the relevant EU and national environmental regulations will be considered. For more details on excluded activities and NACE/ATECO codes, refer to section 2 'Characteristics of Target Companies' of the Call for Proposals.

Regarding the Green Transition Fund - PNRR, the Call for Proposals has been published on the website of the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy and on the website of CDP Venture Capital SGR (see the 'Download the Calls and Guidance' section below, updated version as of January 2025).

Interested parties can submit projects for potential investment in target companies by the Fund by sending the project presentation and supporting documentation to the email address greentransitionfund@cdpventurecapital.it.

For more details on the required documentation, please refer to 'Annex 1 - Due Diligence Checklist, target company,' published on the website of the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy and on the website of CDP Venture Capital SGR (see the 'Download the Calls and Guidance' section below, updated version as of January 2025).

The Green Transition Fund – PNRR is a closed-end reserved mutual fund established on September 20, 2022, based on the agreement signed by the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy (formerly the Ministry of Economic Development) and CDP Venture Capital SGR S.p.A., utilizing resources allocated by the European Union through the NextGeneration EU initiative and included in NRRP Mission 2, Component 2, Investment 5.4 “Support for start-ups and venture capital active in the ecological transition”, for a total amount of EUR 250 million.

The objective of the Fund is to incentivize private investments, improve access to financing in Italy for start-ups active in the green transition, and develop the venture capital market in this sector by signing financing agreements with start-ups, newcos, or venture capital funds by June 30, 2026, for an amount necessary to fully utilize the resources reserved for the fund (EUR 250 million).

Investments are made following the presentation of investment opportunities as described in the Call for Proposals.

The Fund operates through both direct and indirect investments (fund of funds model).

Direct investments will be made through equity and quasi-equity instruments, with the specific terms for each investment (such as the amount invested and the specific type of instrument) being evaluated and defined on a case-by-case basis by the investment team. In line with market practice, CDP Venture Capital SGR reserves the right to condition the investment on the recognition of certain specific rights, such as informational or governance rights.

Indirect investments (fund of funds model) will be made through the subscription of instruments of “third-party target funds” managed by “authorized managers.”

For further details on direct and indirect investments, please refer to the definitions outlined in the Financial Agreement (updated version as of June 10, 2024), signed between the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy (formerly the Ministry of Economic Development) and CDP Venture Capital SGR S.p.A.

No, the investment methods of the Green Transition Fund are as described in the FAQ section.