Italian Startups with Social and Environmental impact: Fundraising Strategy and Access to Capital

This thesis investigates how Italian startups with a social and environmental mission approach the challenge of early-stage fundraising. Drawing on a structured analysis of 25 top performing impact startups from Social Innovation Monitor 2024 and 2025, the research examines the types of investors involved, the strategies employed across different funding rounds, and the role of public and private capital in fostering mission-driven entrepreneurship. The study builds on existing academic literature on impact investing and startup financing, with particular attention to the Italian context, where the ecosystem remains underdeveloped but shows strong potential. The research adopts a mixed-methods, exploratory approach, combining desk research with quantitative data analysis. A proprietary dataset of 43 funding rounds was created, collecting information from platforms such as AIDA, Crunchbase, Dealroom, and open-access media. Startups were analyzed across key variables, including round size, investor type, timing between rounds, and the use of funding instruments. Data was processed using Excel pivot tables and visualized to identify patterns in investor behavior and startup trajectories. Key findings reveal the dominance of equity financing, especially in seed rounds, and the strategic role of public investors, particularly CDP Venture Capital, in catalysing early-stage growth. Mixed rounds involving multiple investor types, such as venture capital and business angels, were found to raise significantly higher amounts, while grants emerged as a crucial tool in the pre-seed phase, especially when offered by the European Innovation Council or regional public bodies. The analysis also highlights that top-performing rounds often involve international investors or are linked to strategic operations such as mergers or technological scale-ups. By focusing on the most successful startups of the current period, this study offers actionable insights for both founders and policymakers. It contributes to a better understanding of how to structure investment strategies that align with both financial sustainability and impact objectives in the evolving Italian venture landscape.