Less than 12 months after entering the market, which coincided with a €6 million pre-seed round, Volta, the start-up founded by Mario Parteli and Paul Guillemin to automate wholesale processes using artificial intelligence, has completed a new €5 million investment round, bringing the total amount raised to €11 million.
The lead investor in the transaction is the American VC fund RTP Global, one of the first investors in SumUp, Qonto, Datadog, Delivery Hero and others. The transaction also confirms the support of the first international funds that accompanied Volta’s entry into the market, Emblem, Robin Capital and Founders Future, as well as the entry of Pascal Houillon, former CEO of Cegid, who has always been committed to supporting the digitalisation of businesses in all his roles.
Mario Parteli, co-CEO and co-founder of VOLTA (pictured with the other co-founder), comments in a statement: “After only a few months of operation, when we were not yet thinking about raising more funds, we saw strong interest in our project and in the huge B2B market we are transforming, which is highly fragmented and still too reliant on manual labour and outdated IT systems. A decisive factor in the new operation was our ability to identify, much earlier than expected thanks to dialogue with thousands of companies, the many needs of customers and the path to providing them with the solutions they require. We are honoured by the attention given to us by RTP Global, one of the most respected international VCs, also for its entrepreneurial and long-term approach. This will allow us to quickly bring the most advanced tools for optimising sales to distributors and manufacturing companies, also supporting them in their relationships with their agent networks, which are increasingly made up of a new generation of workers. The resources raised will accelerate product development in this direction, with strong AI integration that will enhance every single feature, and will help drive go-to-market in Italy and France. To this end, we will also expand the team with the best talent.”
The B2B digital commerce market, in which Volta operates, is what Netcomm defines as “a strategic infrastructure of the modern economy, destined to profoundly transform production, distribution and relational chains”, estimating its value for 2025 in Italy alone at over €1.6 trillion, roughly double the value of B2C e-commerce, even though it has not yet achieved the same quality in terms of a smooth, simple and automated experience.
With its platform that combines catalogue management, order management and customer relations in a single tool, while integrating with existing systems (ERP, CRM, PIM, WMS), Volta aims to bridge this gap in experience and processes, helping to support the competitiveness and growth of companies.
Volta is a platform that centralises company data and all channels from which orders may originate (e-mail, PDF, WhatsApp, portals) into a single flow, providing a comprehensive overview of the situation and orderly and efficient management of requests, which is essential for defining sales strategies and order fulfilment. It automates up to 90% of manual activities, from order entry to price updates for customers and suppliers, and amplifies by transforming data into a lever for growth, with personalised recommendations, opportunity identification and AI-driven business decisions.
Thomas Cuvelier, partner at RTP Global, comments: “We choose to support companies that truly change the rules of the game. This is exactly what Volta does: in less than a year, Paul, Mario and their team have demonstrated their ability to transform B2B commerce, thanks to an ambitious vision, rapid execution and already impressive growth. Volta is not limiting itself to digitising existing processes, but is building a new standard that we believe is destined to establish itself internationally. We are closely following the Italian tech scene and believe it is well positioned to develop – as has happened in France – a mature innovation ecosystem capable of generating a significant positive impact on the markets and increasing the competitiveness of more traditional businesses through digitisation.
Houillon adds: “Volta meets a strategic objective: to digitise operations that are still too manual and fragmented. Thanks to its modular approach and expertise in artificial intelligence, the solution is perfectly aligned with the modernisation challenges facing distribution players. I am convinced of the team’s potential and the relevance of their platform. Their ambitious vision and rapid implementation make Volta a player to watch closely.
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