The return of Jody Vender, the banker who brought private equity to Italy – Corriere.it

Jody Vender is back, the child prodigy who marked the history of Milanese finance between the 80s and 90s, boosting M&A and listings on the Stock Exchange through his Sopaf. That is to say the control room which on the Italian market accelerated new models such as venture capital and private equity, an activity that was or was almost unknown in those years that were arriving in Italy. Always with the aim of making medium-sized companies grow, making them champions through the Stock Exchange. Now she’s back on the scene with an assignment in that industry she loves most. Vender was in fact appointed senior advisor of Intermonte, the investment bank led by the managing director Guglielmo Manetti to contribute to the development of the business of the Investment Banking division. He will work closely with the Investment Banking division of Intermonte, headed by Fabio Pigorini.

The boost to the growth of medium-sized companies

We will help medium-sized companies to grow, says Vender who has always done that job. The IMA of Bologna, the group headed by the Vacchi family had been listed by Sopaf and is now an international champion. It was Sopaf that brought it to listing on Piazza Affari. The same path for Recordati, on whose board Vender was for a long time contributing to the development of the company, now a big name in the pharmaceutical world. Born in 1950, four children, degree in Business Economics from the Luigi Bocconi University in Milan — where he was a professor in charge of the Finance area from 1977 to 2004 — Vender sold his Sopaf in 2005. But since then he has continued to follow companies in the their growth path, essential, because, as my friend Ferruccio de Bortoli says, small is not beautiful. From behind the scenes, the banker has always continued to work in the nursery of younger companies, helping them to grow bigger.

In Mondadori, the best years

He also founded businesses. this is the case of Assiteca created by Luciano Lucca, which has become a significant reality in the insurance brokerage business, so much so that it has attracted the attention and the takeover bid by the international group Howden Broking Group. Then he continues to play the role of consultant on many boards of directors. For example that of Coelclerici and Guber Banca. was for four years, until 2020 senior advisor for Italy of Checkers Capital, historic French private equity fund. Today senior advisor and chairman of the private equity investment committee of Green Arrow Capital sgr and vice chairman of Decalia Asset Management. The experience that he will bring to Intermonte for medium-sized companies is that gained over many years of active roles in Sopaf. he was a shareholder of Pirelli in the 90s and also Mondadori of which he says he has the best memory. I was alongside Mario Formenton, extraordinary years, I was the first partner outside the family. Then there was Rinaldo Piaggio: I had sold my stake to the then Finmeccanica. Then the investments in Humanitas, of which he was one of the founding members.

Active advisor

He was also an active director in Buitoni, Zanussi, Mondadori and Banca Nazionale dell’Agricoltura. In my career I have always tried to make a strong contribution to the growth and internationalization of companies, also through extraordinary operations, says Vender —. Intermonte represents an important point of reference on the market for Italian companies and a privileged gateway to the capital market, skills of great value at a time when Italian entrepreneurial excellence needs more than ever to be accompanied and supported in operations aimed at long-term development.

Sopaf, nursery of bankers

In thirty years of work he had made Sopaf into a structured group with an investment bank, an asset management company (Pasfin), an insurance company (Comitas), a company that makes mortgage loans, a real estate company (Gifin). He could only attract young people aiming for a career in finance. In that school private equity and M&A professionals such as Edoardo Lanzavecchia, Carlo Mammola, Eugenio Morpurgo, Guido Belli were forged. And Anna Gervasoni, general manager of Aifi worked there. Private equity and venture capital were all specialties that were emerging at the time. Now the challenge is to continue to find capital for businesses.