What stage does Growth Engine invest at?

Growth Engine invests at the Pre-Seed, Seed, Series A stages.

What sectors does Growth Engine focus on?

Growth Engine focuses on Sector Agnostic.

Where is Growth Engine located?

Growth Engine is headquartered in Milan, IT.

Growth Engine

Venture capital

Milan · Pre-Seed–Series A · 3 people tracked

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Find your way into Growth Engine

1,217 people in our graph share verified history with the Growth Engine team — schools, employers, funds. One of them is your warm intro.

Chris Bischoffunlockedknows Fabio Mondini de Focatiis · together at INSEAD (overlapped)

×3knows the team · via Massachusetts Institute of Technology

×3knows the team · via INSEAD

knows the team · via McKinsey & Company

knows the team · via Politecnico di Torino

knows the team · via Russell Reynolds Associates Inc

✨ Fox Verdict

Investment thesis

Growth Engine is a thesis-driven, sector-agnostic VC holding investing from pre-seed to pre-Series A, built on the conviction that exceptional founders win. It backs brilliant founders solving real-world problems regardless of stage or sector. Although it enters early, its portfolio spans early-stage through growth, providing diversification across sectors and stages and mitigating risk. Its investment committee comprises entrepreneurs, VC pioneers, and top executives who have deployed and managed billions in enterprise value, giving it an edge in identifying standout opportunities. Its dealflow is amplified through relationships with Growth Capital and A-Road, allowing it to capture promising emerging companies early.

Invests inSector AgnosticEurope Italy Milan

Source: firm website, verified Aug 3, 2026.

Stage

Pre-Seed–Series A

Milan, IT

Instruments

Equity

Tracked investments

Team · 3 people

from the firm's website & curated

Fabio Mondini de Focatiis· Co-Founder· Milan, Lombardy, Italyin 𝕏

Fabio Mondini de Focatiis is the Founding Partner and CEO of Growth Capital, a European investment banking firm focused on fund raising and M&A for scaleups, and is Co-Founder and main shareholder of Growth Engine, a holding company with more than 55 startup investments and 10 exits. He previously spent eight years at Eurazeo, following its acquisition of IdInvest Partners, where he worked on venture capital investments in the Smart City sector globally and across sectors in Italy. He holds an MBA from INSEAD and an M.S. in Civil and Environmental Engineering from MIT, and is fluent in English, Spanish, French, and Italian.

Marco Ariello· Investment Committee Member· Milan, Lombardy, Italyin

Chairman of Datamaran and former co-founder and managing partner at Syntegra Capital, as well as former chairman of Moleskine, with over 25 years in private equity.

Michele Appendino· Investment Committee Member· Milan, Lombardy, Italyin

Chairman of AME & Solar Ventures and co-founder of Italy's first IT-focused VC. Formerly a senior manager at McKinsey, with over 20 years as an active investor.

What they invest in

from 1 of 1 portfolio companies

Fintech ×1

HQs:Italy×1

Investments · 1 tracked

founders shown can be your intro path

Vertis Venture 6 Digital Sudvertis.it inFeb 2025

Vertis SGR is an asset management company (SGR) that integrates ESG factors into its investment process to analyze opportunities and risks.

FintechNaples, IT

Amedeo Giurazza(Founder)in

Co-investorsCDP Venture Capital Neva Sgr.Vertis SGR

Portfolio news

latest coverage across their companies

Intesa Sanpaolo And Vertis SGR To Support Growth Of Startups And SMEs In Italy | Crowdfund Insider

Vertis Venture 6 Digital Sud · crowdfundinsider.com · May 4, 2026

Frequently asked questions

What stage does Growth Engine invest at?: Growth Engine invests at the Pre-Seed, Seed, Series A stages.
What sectors does Growth Engine focus on?: Growth Engine focuses on Sector Agnostic.
Where is Growth Engine located?: Growth Engine is headquartered in Milan, IT.

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