Panakès Partners' $9.2M Bet on Italy's MedTech and BioTech Future

Jan de Vries · 2026-10-15

Milan's Panakès Partners just raised €8.5 million ($9.2 million) from Lombardia Venture STEP, a venture capital fund of funds backed by the Lombardy Region. The money will flow into life sciences, MedTech, and BioTech companies—the kind of startups that often struggle to get traditional financing. Lombardia Venture STEP is financed by European funds from the PR FESR Lombardy 2021-2027 program and managed by Finlombarda. Its mission? To open up venture capital for innovative companies in Lombardy, especially startups and scaleups that are ready to grow. ### A Strategic Partnership for Innovation "We are delighted to launch Panakès Fund – Fondo Parallelo Lombardia together with the Lombardy Region and Finlombarda," says Diana Saraceni, Founder and Managing Partner of Panakès Partners. "It's a further step in our commitment to supporting the most promising startups and scaleups in MedTech and BioTech, helping to build an increasingly solid innovation ecosystem in the Lombardy area." This isn't an isolated move. It follows a wave of regional venture capital initiatives in Italy, all supported by European funding. ### Other Regional Funds Making Waves - In September 2026, Milan- and Rome-based Eureka! Venture launched a €20 million ($21.7 million) DeepTech fund, with €16 million ($17.4 million) from Lazio Innova. - In October, NVM Ventures announced a €23.6 million ($25.6 million) first close for its Lazio investment vehicle, including €18.83 million ($20.4 million) from the same regional investor. Together, those two public commitments total €34.83 million ($37.8 million). Within Lombardy, Lombardia Venture has already participated in startup financings through parallel vehicles—like Milan-based ISAAC's €14 million ($15.2 million) round in March 2026 and Bergamo-based Resilco's €5 million ($5.4 million) Series A in 2025. ### Why This Matters for the Ecosystem "We consider it strategic to participate in initiatives like Lombardia Venture STEP, which foster effective collaboration between public and private capital," adds Lorenzo Giordano, CFO of Panakès Partners. "The contribution of the Lombardy Region allows us to expand our investment capacity in MedTech and BioTech, supporting the growth of innovative companies in the Lombard territory." Panakès Partners itself is a Milan-based venture capital firm founded in 2015 by Fabrizio Landi, Alessio Beverina, and Diana Saraceni. It manages assets of approximately €300 million ($326 million) and focuses on ambitious teams developing revolutionary technologies in life sciences. Its goal? To foster digital technologies, DeepTech, biotechnologies, and renewable, clean, and resource-efficient technologies. In line with Action 1.6.2 of the PR FESR Lombardy 21-27, the dedicated vehicle Panakès Fund – Fondo Parallelo Lombardia will co-invest alongside the main funds Panakès Fund and Purple Fund. ### The Bigger Picture For U.S. investors and entrepreneurs watching Europe, this signals a growing trend: regional governments are stepping up to fill funding gaps in deep tech and life sciences. If you're in MedTech or BioTech, Lombardy is becoming a place to watch. The combination of public and private capital could be a blueprint for other regions—and a source of opportunity for startups looking to expand across the Atlantic.