Axon is strengthening its technology and innovation investment platform with the promotion of four new partners in the investment division and one more in consulting, as well as the reorganisation of the investment division into four business units: direct investment, crossover investment/alternative markets, fund of funds and tech transfer/impact.
Growth equity will be led by Iván Feito, focusing on growth and Southern Europe. Luis Castañeda will lead the sustainbility markets unit. This business unit aims to create a new category in the European market in investments in IPOs and companies listed on alternative stock markets.
Mauro Yovane will head the fund of funds, secondaries and co-investments unit, and Juan Jiménez, the IPO-crossover unit. Between the four investment units, they have more than twenty professionals and close to 500 million, which will probably reach 750 million by the end of the year. The new partners have been with Axon for an average of seven years and are responsible for a large part of the firm’s track record. A track record that has led Axon to be among the world’s top managers in terms of return consistency.
The investment mentioned above units all maintain an exclusive focus on technology and innovation and will continue to be supervised by their Managing Partners: Francisco Velázquez de Cuéllar (also Chairman of the group) and Alfonso de León, who will continue to chair the various investment committees and design the general strategies of the funds.
Javier Martínez de Irujo assumes the role of CFO of the firm with direct responsibility for finance, legal, compliance and systems. Miguel Vallone takes over as head of the Latin American investment business. Both have more than twenty years of industry experience and more than six years with the firm.
The firm has also promoted a new partner in the consulting division, Álvaro Neira, an industrial engineer who has been with the firm for nearly ten years.
All the new appointments and the reorganisation by the strategy are a further step in Axon’s consolidation as a leading European technology investment and advisory platform.