Seven years after its foundation the fund is still growing. The asset management company F2i – Fondi italiani per le infrastrutture has had a long progressing history since CEO Vito Gamberale developed the idea of a single-country infrastructure investment fund. Gamberale’s idea generated when he was involved with Autostrade, the Italian highway company that he chaired from 2000 to 2006 and helped to develop into an established multinational enterprise.
The international vocation of F2i was clear since the beginning. Although its shareholdership encompasses important Italian institutional investors, F2i proved able to attract funds from investors such as Bank of America-Merrill Lynch and Ardian (formerly AXA Private Equity). At the same time, F2i was also able to return to Italy’s important strategic assets for the country’s gas distribution, airports and telecommunications development.
Moreover, the capacity of F2i’s funds for infrastructures aligns with European standards. The First F2i Fund raised 1,852 million Euros, invested in various establishments to create business sectors and national champions. The Second Fund, currently bringing the fundraising stage to completion with an overall target of 1.2 billion Euros, already achieved 755 million Euros of subscribed capital, attracting both Italian and international investors, and becoming the largest European single country investment fund. The fund is still expected to grow, as demonstrated through the Second Fund’s ongoing fundraising operation and Vito Gamberale’s comments to Sole24Ore anticipating the creation of a new fund to continue the investment strategy launched by the First Fund and evolving with the Second.
F2i’s CEO Vito Gamberale‘s interview to the weekly magazine Panorama.
Vito Gamberale‘s interview with Sole24Ore.