Key Takeaways
- • Exceptional Ventures, the London-based venture capital firm founded by former Cisco Systems executive Paolo Pio and Matt Cooper, is raising a second fund, EV Fund 2, targeting £50 million.
- • EV Fund 2 will focus exclusively on health, ageing and well-being, investing in 'Joyspan' companies across prevention, early diagnosis and risk assessment, and smarter treatments and healthcare delivery.
- • Anchor investor Compagnia di San Paolo is joined by the British Business Bank, Fondazione Cariplo and Fondazione CRC, with private investor Simone Cimminelli also participating.
- • EV Fund 1, launched in 2022, was fully invested in 41 start-ups across the UK, EU and US, with portfolio revenue reportedly doubling year-on-year and several companies completing Series A and B rounds.
- • Per the article, venture funding in the wellbeing sector reached $7 billion in the first half of the prior year, ahead of fintech and cryptocurrency.
Summary
Exceptional Ventures, a London-based venture capital firm co-founded by former Cisco Systems executive Paolo Pio and American Matt Cooper, is launching its second fund, EV Fund 2, according to Il Sole 24 ORE. The fund aims to raise £50 million, all of which will be allocated to new "Joyspan" companies, a term coined for the fund combining "lifespan" and "joy" to describe its focus on health, ageing and well-being. The strategy centres on three areas: prevention, early diagnosis and risk assessment, and smarter treatments and healthcare delivery.
The first fund, EV Fund 1, launched in 2022 and was fully invested in 41 start-ups across the United Kingdom, the European Union and the United States. The article reports that many portfolio companies have completed Series A and Series B rounds and that the portfolio's total revenue doubled year-on-year. EV Fund 2 was set in motion in September 2025.
EV Fund 2 is backed by institutional investors including the British Business Bank and three European banking foundations: Compagnia di San Paolo, which is the anchor investor, Fondazione Cariplo and Fondazione CRC. Private investors include Simone Cimminelli, son of the late Torino FC president and an automotive industry entrepreneur.
The article cites a growing market rationale. Europe's population is ageing, with more than half of citizens projected to be over 55 by 2050, and the wellbeing economy is estimated to be worth almost $10 trillion by the end of the decade. Harvard University has calculated that one additional year of healthy life contributes an additional $38,000 billion to global GDP. Venture capital funding in the wellbeing sector reached $7 billion in the first half of the prior year, surpassing funding for the financial industry, including fintech and cryptocurrencies.
The fund has also been invited to take part in Wave by Vento, the annual innovation and finance event in Turin held under the Exor umbrella. John Elkann, head of Exor and Stellantis and heir to the Agnelli family, is described as having been drawn to the fund's financial and entrepreneurial concept.
The first fund, EV Fund 1, launched in 2022 and was fully invested in 41 start-ups across the United Kingdom, the European Union and the United States. The article reports that many portfolio companies have completed Series A and Series B rounds and that the portfolio's total revenue doubled year-on-year. EV Fund 2 was set in motion in September 2025.
EV Fund 2 is backed by institutional investors including the British Business Bank and three European banking foundations: Compagnia di San Paolo, which is the anchor investor, Fondazione Cariplo and Fondazione CRC. Private investors include Simone Cimminelli, son of the late Torino FC president and an automotive industry entrepreneur.
The article cites a growing market rationale. Europe's population is ageing, with more than half of citizens projected to be over 55 by 2050, and the wellbeing economy is estimated to be worth almost $10 trillion by the end of the decade. Harvard University has calculated that one additional year of healthy life contributes an additional $38,000 billion to global GDP. Venture capital funding in the wellbeing sector reached $7 billion in the first half of the prior year, surpassing funding for the financial industry, including fintech and cryptocurrencies.
The fund has also been invited to take part in Wave by Vento, the annual innovation and finance event in Turin held under the Exor umbrella. John Elkann, head of Exor and Stellantis and heir to the Agnelli family, is described as having been drawn to the fund's financial and entrepreneurial concept.
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