Italy's hugest closed-end fund, F2i, is set to launch in 2017 Fund III, which has a gathering aim of 3 billion euros and a global approach. Great interest coming from international funds.
F2i Italian fund raises Fund III: international interest
Italian fund F2i is expected to launch in 2017 its new Fund III, which aims to raise funds to invest in infrastructures globally. The goal is set to 3 billion euros, which would be the hugest fundraising ever launched by an Italian investment company. As one of the sources stated, one of F2i's interlocutors, indeed, would be Singapore's sovereign wealth fund GIC. This kind of operation seems to be interesting to a global level, in particular overseas: many international funds have allocated a huge budget to be invested in infrastructures, such as, for example, Brookfield Asset Management and Global Infrastructure Partners. Both of these heavyweight U.S. funds gathered a great amount, in economic terms, in order to play investments in the infrastructure field. They are, however, not the only ones, as U.S. private equity firm Blackstone, as well as the greatest sovereign fund in Saudi Arabia, have plans to allocate the amount of 40 billion dollars for infrastructure projects. What F2i plans to do is to buy out investors from Fund I using the amount of 1.5 billion euros, so that strategic assets will be able to be transferred to Fund III. Fund I was launched in 2007 and it raised an amount of 1.8 billion and it is now lowered with the option for its investors to be paid off, so that they can newly invest in the brand new Fund III. This operation is meant to maintain the investments active towards the major companies belonging to the firm guided by Renato Ravanelli, such as 2i Aeroporti, F2i's holding operating in the airport sector. One further decision F2i made is not to alter Fund II, as it is the major stakeholder in "E2i Energie Speciali", the company operating in renewable energy field. The amount that this fund gathered in 2015 is of 1.2 billion euros, but it still has to be completely deployed. Foreign interest for Italian infrastructure sector comes not only from overseas, but also from inside Europe: German insurance company Allianz was one of the investors taking a stake in the motorway branch of Atlantia in 2017. Same thing for Singapore's sovereign fund GIC: interested in F2i's Fund III, this fund has already closed some important property deals on the Italian territory, including the complete acquisition of the Centre-Italy mall called "RomaEst Shopping Centre". It also acquired a huge number of logistic centres, as planned in its 2.4 billion euros purchase strategy regarding the European logistics property called "P3 Logistic Parks".
Profiling F2i Italian fund
Created in 2007,
F2i - Italian funds for infrastructure, is the major Italian closed-end fund and one of the biggest among Europe. The Savings Managing Society (SGR) can count on important partnerships, such as credit institutes, institutions, banking foundations, public welfare funds, as well as international banks. The firm's mission is to improve Italian infrastructural asset, so that it could compete with European and international standards. The branches F2i looks at are different: transportation infrastructures, airports, telecommunications and logical networks, water and gas distibution, social infrastructures and waste management. Renato Ravanelli is the current CEO, appointed in 2014. In 2007 F2i launched Fund I, in 2012 Fund II. A Third Fund is expected to be launched in 2017.
