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Key people at Angels4Women.
Angels4Women was founded in 2018 by Anna Amati (Co-founder).
Angels4Women is a Milan, Italy-based business angel network that provides early-stage capital and strategic mentorship to startups founded by women or targeting the female consumer market. The organization operates across diverse industry sectors, including financial technology, agricultural technology, fashion, and biotechnology, generating financial returns through direct equity investments. To sustain its operational model, the group relies on annual membership dues from individual investors alongside corporate sponsorships. The investment network has scaled to include over 100 active business angel members and has deployed capital into more than 20 early-stage companies. Angels4Women maintains strategic partnerships with corporate sponsors like DAZN Italy and has backed portfolio companies such as Orange Fiber, Ricehouse, and Chitè. The organization was founded in 2018 by AXA Italia, Impact Hub Milano, and a core group of twenty female business angels including Antonella Grassigli.
Key people at Angels4Women.
Angels4Women was founded in 2018 by Anna Amati (Co-founder).
Angels4Women has 2 tracked investments across 2 companies. The latest tracked deal is $600K Seed in Diamante in January 2023.
| Date | Company | Round | Lead Investor(s) | Co-Investor(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 17, 2023 | Diamante | $600K Seed | Arieli Capital | Elena Paola Lanati, Angels4impact |
| Mar 2, 2020 | Cynomys | $457K Other Equity | — | Impact Angels |
# Angels4Women: High-Level Overview
Angels4Women (A4W) is not a company but rather a business angels association—a membership-based investment network focused on supporting female entrepreneurship through early-stage investments.[1][2] Founded at the end of 2018 by AXA Italia and Impact Hub, A4W operates as a mission-driven investment collective rather than a traditional venture capital firm or startup.[3]
The organization's core mission is to match investor-members with innovative female entrepreneurs to realize early-stage investments while reducing the gender gap in entrepreneurship.[2] A4W primarily conducts investment activities—including scouting, pre-screening, and comprehensive screening of entrepreneurial projects—while also providing training and organizing events related to angel investing and women's entrepreneurship.[1] The network invests across diverse sectors including education, fintech, agritech, fashion & lifestyle, tech/industry, media & entertainment, and biotech.[2]
A4W's investment philosophy centers on diversity as a growth factor. The organization believes that supporting female-led startups with high growth potential strengthens the broader innovation ecosystem while challenging entrepreneurial stereotypes.[4] Members invest in startups founded by women or those predominantly targeting the female market, with selected projects undergoing rigorous economic, financial, tax, accounting, and legal evaluation before investment decisions.[2]
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Angels4Women was established at the end of 2018 through a partnership between AXA Italia and Impact Hub, launching with 20 founding female business angels.[3] This founding structure reflects the organization's dual commitment: AXA Italia brought institutional credibility and resources, while Impact Hub contributed its innovation ecosystem expertise and physical infrastructure (A4W is based at Impact Hub Milano).[1]
The organization has experienced significant growth since inception. Within approximately two years of the founding date mentioned in the search results, A4W expanded from 20 founding members to 65 members and secured sponsorships including a partnership with DAZN Italy.[3] This growth trajectory demonstrates increasing market recognition of the need for dedicated angel investment networks focused on female entrepreneurship.
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Angels4Women operates at the intersection of two significant market trends: the persistent gender gap in venture capital funding and the rising performance of female-led startups. The organization addresses a documented market inefficiency—female founders receive disproportionately less angel and venture capital despite evidence of strong returns—by creating a dedicated capital pool and professional network specifically designed to identify and support women entrepreneurs.
The timing of A4W's emergence (2018) coincided with growing institutional recognition that diversity drives innovation and financial returns. By positioning itself as a bridge between capital and underserved female entrepreneurs, A4W influences the broader ecosystem by normalizing women-led startup investment, building a professional infrastructure around female entrepreneurship, and creating visibility for female founders who might otherwise lack access to traditional angel networks.
The organization's partnership strategy—collaborating with Impact Hub, AXA Italia, DAZN Italy, Angel4Impact, IBAN Association, and the Marisa Bellisario Foundation—demonstrates how specialized investment networks can leverage ecosystem players to amplify their impact beyond direct capital deployment.[3]
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Angels4Women represents a structural response to market inefficiency in early-stage funding allocation. Rather than competing with generalist angel networks, A4W has carved a defensible niche by combining specialized expertise (women-focused investing), institutional backing (AXA Italia), ecosystem integration (Impact Hub), and professional infrastructure (training, events, deal flow management).
The organization's trajectory suggests continued growth as institutional awareness of gender-gap issues in entrepreneurship deepens and as female-led startups demonstrate sustained strong performance. Future evolution likely involves geographic expansion beyond Italy, deeper integration with international angel networks, and potentially formalized fund structures that allow institutional capital to deploy through A4W's sourcing and due diligence capabilities.
A4W's influence on the broader ecosystem will likely increase as it demonstrates measurable returns from female-led investments, creating a virtuous cycle: stronger returns attract more capital, larger capital pools fund more female entrepreneurs, and documented success attracts institutional partners seeking both financial and impact returns.
