IUSINTECH specialises in assisting business entities and start-ups operating in the digital sector with matters related to M&A activity: acquisitions or selling shares to reorganize company capital, joint ventures or business combination transactions, as well as commercial and strategic partnerships. 

A start-up is an emergent company in the initial stages of its life cycle seeking out resources and financing for developing projects for future growth. Italy has approximately 5,800 Italian start-ups employing about 35,000 people (associates and employees).

Innovative start-ups are a start-up subcategory which gained initial legal recognition in the 2.0 Decree for Growth (subsequently converted into Statute n° 221/2012) which lists new financial instruments and incentives applicable to all stages of the life cycle from conception, to design and evolution. Although the defining criteria of a start-up here is limited to companies who create technological innovation, they can be based in any productive sector for example internet, telecoms, IT, technology, artificial intelligence, manufacturing, services, industry, and cottage industries to name but a few. The defining factor is having new ideas to sell.

Innovative start-ups can be registered companies, cooperatives, or European companies whose capital is not quoted on a regulated stock exchange or a multilateral trading platform.

In order to qualify as an innovative start-up and be eligible for the special treatment, the entity must be considered innovative and possess the following characteristics:

• Newly constituted company (or active for less than 4 years)
• Headquarters located in Italy
• Annual turnover less than € 5 million
• No distribution of earnings during the period which they receive financial incentives from the innovative start-up programme
• Prevalent social objective is the development and sale of innovative products and services that are considered of high technological value
• Be established as a registered company not resulting from a merger, a company division or as a result of a company transfer or transfer of a branch of the company

To qualify as having innovative content, the company has to be able to demonstrate one of the following three criteria:

• An amount equal to at least 15% of the higher of either annual turnover and annual costs is set aside for R&D activities
• Total workforce comprised of at least one third of graduate students, research graduates or researchers, or a minimum of two thirds of associates and partners in possession of a master’s degree.
• The company is the owner, depositor or license holder of a registered patent (industrial patent rights) or owns the rights to elaborate the initially registered idea

Being qualified as an innovative start-up provides manifold advantages: access to tax breaks and a lighter regulatory environment in terms of bankruptcy law, as well as financial reductions and a protection scheme.

Funds required for company growth can be raised via institutional entity tenders or by accessing venture capital (high risk capital investments earmarked for high potential projects such as those promoted by start-ups).

Start-up incubators are another option that allows companies to accelerate growth in new companies by providing services and useful knowledge to those wanting to get a project off the ground; another alternative is the elaboration of a crowdfunding start-up project.

The lawyer plays a pivotal role in advising start-ups and innovative start-ups given the numerous formal and substantial legal requirements in view of establishing a company. This is why it is strongly advisable to call upon the services of a start-up expert prior to company formation to select the most appropriate company format and draft the necessary contractual documentation, namely company statutes and conventions that serve to formalize employment relations and agreements with other entities such as universities.

IUSINTECH accompanies start-ups and innovative start-ups in all of the areas previously mentioned from creation to registration with the Chamber of Commerce. We are also available to provide consultancy and draft the corresponding legal documentation https://www.iusintech.com/servizi/contrattualistica concerning trademark protection and industrial patent rights [https://www.iusintech.com/servizi/proprieta-intellettuale-e-industriale/] as well as providing advice on crowdfunding.