Our mission

Sustainable Ventures wants to help accelerate the Green Transition process by bringing financial resources, managerial experience and a deep knowledge of the international business ecosystem to a company that has products and experiences in technologies related to decarbonization and electrification processes and the ambition to become a leader international sector.

Promoters

CMC Capital is an independent consulting boutique established in 2012 to advise clients on complex M&A deals.

  • His team combines decades of experience in executing M&A operations with strong knowledge and understanding of the ESG and renewable energy industry having worked in this sector for many decades.
Carlo Calabria

Carlo has nearly 4 decades of experience in the financial services industry and has held various senior leadership positions at some of the largest financial institutions in the world. He is a M&A expert with extensive experience across many industries and regions.
Carlo began his career at Morgan Grenfell in 1983. From 2016 to 2020 he was Head of Banking for Barclays Europe and was responsible for the company’s investment banking activities in Continental Europe and CEEMENA. He held the position of Head of International M&A, first at Credit Suisse and then at Merrill Lynch, before joining Barclays in 2016 as M&A president before his role was extended to all banking products. Throughout his career, Carlo has led the execution of momentous operations: Telecom Italia defense / sale to Olivetti ($ 60 billion), Endesa to Enel ($ 41 billion), Arcelor to Mittal ($ 27 billion), Portugal Telecom from the hostile offer of SONAE .Com (16.8 billion dollars), IMI to Istituto San Paolo (15 billion dollars), INA to Generali (12.4 billion euros) and Porsche acquisition of Volkswagen (35 billion euros ).
In 2012, Carlo founded CMC Capital Limited, an investment banking boutique specializing in M&A and debt restructuring. Carlo returned to CMC Capital in 2021 and is co-sponsor of Centricus Acquisition Corp, a Nasdaq-listed SPAC. Centricus has merged with Arqit, at the end of the merger Carlo joined the board of directors of Arqit.

Stefano Soldi

Stefano has nearly thirty years of investment banking experience with a particular focus on the renewable energy sector. Prior to rejoining CMC Capital in November 2020, Soldi was Managing Director of Barclays’ European Power, Utilities and Infrastructure team, as well as Head of EMEA Renewables. Prior to Barclays and CMCC, Stefano worked in investment banking at Merrill Lynch, Credit Suisse and Lazard.
Stefano also held the position of Head of Business Development and M&A at the Hera Group, a listed municipal utility with a market capitalization of 6 billion euros.
He has a degree in Economics and Commerce from the Luigi Bocconi University in Milan and a Master in Finance from the London Business School.

Luigi Calabria

In Leonardo for over three decades, drawing on his experience in NY Lazard Freres, Luigi led equity market and Private Equity / M & A operations, and several IPOs for over 30 billion euros for Leonardo, STMicroelectronics, Avio, AgustaWestland and Selex, Hitachi Rail, Ansaldo Energia etc.
He was Deputy Chairman of Ansaldo Energia, Chairman of Hitachi Rail and Poste Vita, CFO of Poste Italiane and Chief Executive Officer of Mediocredito Centrale. He currently manages Aglaia capital partners, an independent consultancy firm.

FB Group is a strategic and investment consulting firm with a deep experience in complex turnarounds and M&A.

  • FB Group was founded by Franco Bernabè, who is currently the President.
  • So far FB Group has undertaken a number of business ventures in the renewable energy sector and ESG is currently a key area of focus for its main investment strategy.
Franco Bernabè

Franco Bernabè is the President of FB Group, an investment and strategic consulting company based in Rome. He is also Non-Executive Chairman of Acciaierie D’Italia Holding.
He was at the top of important Italian and international companies including Cellnex, Europe’s leading operator of wireless telecommunications infrastructures.
Until February 2019 he was President of NEXI S.p.A., the Italian leader in payments. Between 2007 and 2013 he was President and CEO of Telecom Italia and President of GSMA (the international organization of mobile network operators). In 1983 he joined ENI, the Italian state oil company of which he became CEO in 1992.
He was Vice President of Rothschild Europe, member of the Board of Directors and President of the PetroChina Audit Commission for 14 years, member of the Supervisory Board of TPG Post Group in the Netherlands and of the International Council of JP Morgan. He was also a member of the European Round Table of Industrialists and of the Executive Committee of Confindustria.

Patrizio Graziani

Over the years, Patrizio has held various C-Level positions in companies or groups, both of primary and medium importance; among the main positions held: Head of Internal Audit and Head of Group Corporate Affairs at ENI, Chief Staff Officer of the Group CEO in Telecom Italia, Chairman of Telecom Italia HR Services, Head of the activities of the Telecom Italia Group in Argentina, Senior Vice President of Logistics Purchasing and Real Estate of the Telecom Argentina Group, Executive General Manager of Engineering Argentina. He is currently Managing Partner of FB Group and Business Support Officer of the innovative start-up Techvisory srl.
He is Adjunct Professor of Sustainable Entrepreneurship and Impact Assessment at the Master’s Degree Course in Management of Technologies, Innovation and Sustainability at Sapienza University of Rome. For several years he was Adjunct Professor of Corporate Governance and Business Scenarios at the Master in Business Administration of the Roma Tre University. Patrizio is a Chartered Accountant and Auditor.

Marco Norberto Bernabè

Marco Norberto was born in Paris but grew up in Rome. After his first work experience in London in Credit Suisse’s Investment Banking division, he moved to Cagliari where he joined Tiscali, the first Italian “Free Internet Service Provider”. He subsequently joined Hutchison Whampoa HWL, a Hong Kong-based conglomerate controlled by Li Ka Shing, where he held the position of Manager in the Group Management Accounting & Planning, Group Accounts and Taxation division in London, Paris and in Hong Kong office where he joined the team headquarters. Back in Europe he founded RYOGA, a chain of yoga studio boutique which is the best known operator in Italy.
He also co-founded Wadi Ventures, a Seed Capital fund operating in Israel with two local partners.
Since 2011 he has also been a Director of Energie Valsabbia, a renewable energy company that produces energy from 37 plants throughout Italy: 7 hydroelectric plants and 30 photovoltaic plants with a total power of 43MWp.

Heritage Group is an investment holding company with interests in various sectors, such as, cruise, luxury, health & wellness, technology, with knowledge along the entire investment curve, from start-ups to the best mature companies.

  • Heritage is a long-term shareholder willing to commit significant resources to support the companies in its portfolio.
  • Active in the spac sector as co-sponsor of Centricus Acquisition Corp, a company listed on Nasdaq, with business combination completed with Arqit Quantum in 7 months from launch.
  • Inestimable experience in building, growing and investing in businesses from early stage to mature levels and in both minority and majority positions.
Manfredi Lefebvre d’Ovidio

40 years of in-depth experience in the cruise / leisure industry.
Executive Chairman of Heritage Group, an investment holding company with interests in various sectors.
He held the role of Executive Chairman of Silversea Cruises until 2020, enabling the transformation of the company into the market leader with over 900 destinations worldwide.

Since the beginning of 2019 he has been Chairman of Abercrombie & Kent, a travel company focused on offering luxury travel.

He is the co-Founder of Orbital Solutions Monaco and he held the role of Chairman until 2021.

He was Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors and Senior Independent Director of Arqit Quantum, he is a Board Member of of Bucksense INC.

Cristina Levis

Consolidated experience in the financial sector, she has been and is a member of the Board of Directors for various companies operating in various sectors.

Chief Investment Officer of Heritage Group since 2019.

He is Vice President of Abercrombie & Kent, President of Bucksense Inc. and was a member of the Board of Directors of Orbital Solutions Monaco.

He has served as Chief Financial Officer, Chief Investment Officer and Secretary of SPAC Centricus Acquisition Corp.

For about 6 years she held the role of Chief Business Development Officer of Silversea Cruises and Managing Director of Silversea Expeditions, increasing its revenues by more than 3 times and bringing the EBITDA of the business unit to about one third of the overall Group EBITDA.

Distinguishing Features

Experienced Management Team and Board:

SPAC combines entrepreneurial vision, managerial experience and financial competence.

The promoters have a track record of excellence in the management of listed companies and extraordinary finance transactions.

Extensive knowledge of ESG issues and the green transition and, in a broader sense, of the major challenges to climate change.

Anchor Investor & Corporate Partners representing the most important Italian financial and industrial institutions.

Investment with moderate risk profile:

Right of withdrawal capable of ensuring a floor at the money market rate.

Potential equity return amplified by listed warrants

Probable business combination with objectives capable of supporting listing on main regulated markets.

Alignment of interests between promoters and investors.

Extensive experience in capital markets and in SPAC

Extensive experience in guiding companies in regulated markets and managing their growth process.

Some of the Promoters were Sponsors of Centricus Acquisition Corp, a Nasdaq listed company, with a business combination completed with Arqit Quantum within 7 months of launch.

 

 

Vast and deep-rooted network:

Key relationships in a large ecosystem built over decades.

Access to a continuous stream of quality investment opportunities.

Anchor Investor

Intesa Sanpaolo

The Intesa Sanpaolo Group is one of the main banking groups in Europe and is the engine of sustainable and inclusive growth, with a strong ESG commitment and a great focus on the climate.

The Intesa Sanpaolo Group is the largest banking group in Italy, with 13.5 million customers and over 3,700 branches, the Italian leader in financial activities for families and businesses.

Furthermore, the Group has a strategic international presence, with approximately 1,000 branches and 7.1 million customers. It ranks among the main banking groups in various countries of Central-Eastern Europe and in the Middle East and North Africa thanks to its local subsidiaries.

Corporate Partner

UnipolSai Assicurazioni

UnipolSai Assicurazioni S.p.A. is the insurance company of the Unipol Group, leader in Italy in the Non-Life classes and, in particular, in the R.C. Car.

Also active in the Life business, UnipolSai occupies a leading position in the national ranking of insurance groups for direct deposits equal to approximately € 12.2 billion, of which 7.9 in Non-Life and 4.3 in Life (2020 data). It operates through the largest agency network in Italy, with 2,532 insurance agencies and 5,401 sub-agencies distributed throughout the country. UnipolSai Assicurazioni is controlled by Unipol Gruppo S.p.A. and, like the latter, it is listed on the MTA market of the Italian Stock Exchange.

Target investment strategy

Poised to benefit from access to the capital market

 

Ready to benefit from the opportunities arising from the Green Transition

 

Sustainable and Scalable Business Models

 

Exhibits Sound Financial Performance

Led by a strong management team

 

Able to exploit a vast network of relationships

Examples of Target Sectors and Businesses

Green Sources of Energy

Distributed Generation

Grid Stability and Resilience Solutions

Sustainable Mobility

Energy Efficiency Solutions

Circular Economy

What is a SPAC?

Spacs are special companies without commercial operations that are set up by a group of investors called promoters or sponsors, in order to raise funds from professional investors through an IPO, to be allocated to the acquisition of an existing private company to bring it to regulated markets through a business combination.