Italy-listed agricultural and industrial equipment manufacturer CNH Industrial has announced the creation of a corporate venturing unit.
Last month it said it had grouped its strategic investments in CNH Industrial Ventures after completing a spin-off of its truck, bus and engine operations, now separately listed as Iveco Group IVG.
CNH Industrial Ventures builds on the group’s existing minority stakes, including in agricultural technology company Augmenta and fully-electric autonomous tractor company Monarch Tractor.
“With the aim of strengthening the company’s position as an innovation leader in the agriculture and construction segments, these investments and collaborations will focus on areas including alternative propulsion, digital, autonomy, robotics and other relevant disruptive technologies,” it said in a statement to Nasdaq.
Michele Lombardi, CNH’s senior vice-president of corporate development, said: “We aim to leverage our extensive competencies, market reach and asset base to help rapidly growing companies that are redefining the future of agriculture and construction.”
In 2019, CNH backed hydrogen-fuel truck maker Nikola, which became publicly listed a year later through a reverse merger with a special purpose acquisition company before having to pay $125m to settle alleged fraud charges.
The move comes with a wave of interest by Italy-based corporations in CVC. Italgas, an Italy-based gas distribution company, this month invested $15m in Picarro, a US-based monitoring solution for gas infrastructure, while car maker Stellantis announced a €300m corporate venture capital fund, Stellantis Ventures.
Italy received €40bn for the pandemic for digitalisation and prime minster Mario Draghi is building up on tech to try and catch up with France and Germany in continental Europe in CVC. The Economist said this week: “Two of the biggest reasons why the Italian economy has stagnated since the turn of the century have been low productivity and a stubbornly inefficient bureaucracy. Tens of billions of euros will help to tackle both.”
