KKR & Co has announced plans to open an office in Milan to oversee and expand its operations in Italy, according to a company statement. The move comes after the firm led sizable investments in the Italian telecom and energy sectors over the past two years.
Most prominently, a KKR-led consortium purchased Telecom Italia’s fixed-line network for 19 billion. In a separate transaction, KKR acquired roughly a 30% stake in Enilive, the biofuel division of Eni, for approximately 3.6 billion. Those transactions form the backdrop to the decision to establish a physical presence in Milan.
The new Milan office will cover KKR’s activities across private equity, real assets, credit and insurance, as well as the firm’s private wealth business in Italy. The company said the office is intended to provide a centralized base for its various lines of business operating in the Italian market.
Leadership for the Milan hub has been identified. Marco Fontana, a partner within KKR’s infrastructure team, will lead the office. Nicolo Della Casa, who serves as a director on the private equity team, will take charge of the firm’s private equity activities in Italy.
The firm included a currency reference in its statement: ($1 = 0.8616 euros).
The announcement highlights KKR’s growing footprint in sectors that include telecommunications infrastructure and renewable biofuels, while signalling a broader set of operations across asset classes and client segments in Italy. The firm did not expand on additional staffing plans, specific office opening dates, or future transactions tied to the Milan office in the statement.
While the Milan office will act as a regional base for several of KKR’s business lines, the company provided only limited operational detail about how those business lines will be coordinated locally or about the timeline for ramping up activity in the new location.