LOS ANGELES, CA -- (Marketwire) -- 11/10/09 -- Maverick Angels, a leading Southern California-based angel investment group, announced today its alliance with Intesa SanPaolo Bank, Italy's largest bank and among the largest financial institutions in Europe to create a new angel investor network based in Milan.

"We are very pleased to work together with Intesa SanPaolo on this important and vital new start-up initiative. We welcome the opportunity to bring our dynamic angel investment model to launch and successfully build a new entrepreneurial ecosystem in Italy," says John Dilts, Founder and President of Maverick Angels.

According to Dilts, the Maverick Angels model was established with specific core values for creating a win-win for all of those involved in the early-stage funding process. He states that the engagement with Intesa SanPaolo will bring this same approach to Italy to create stronger ties between start-ups and angel & venture capital investors.

"Italy is ready to break out with a new wave of successful entrepreneurs. The country is filled with high-quality start-up businesses which simply need the right venue and the proper guidance to show them the way toward funding and scalable growth," says Dilts. "We are very proud to play a key role in this new entrepreneurial endeavor. This unique Italian angel investment network is coming at the right time, in the right place, with the right players to make it happen."

Dilts and Chief of Operations Brian Wurfel presented a special two-day Maverick Angels Boot Camp for Entrepreneurs in late September in Milan. Selected entrepreneurs and dozens of angel and venture capital investors from around Italy were invited to participate. "We were extremely impressed by the quality of the entrepreneurs who presented their companies for funding in our recent pilot meetings in Milan," says Dilts. "The start-up CEOs were very enthusiastic to learn and fully embraced our guidance during the Boot Camp. Entrepreneurs in Italy are clearly ready to bring their companies to the global stage for funding and international growth."

More than 50 selected companies were invited to meet potential investors including angel investors, venture capitalists, seed funds and foundations from throughout Europe. Those 50 start-ups were filtered through a structured qualification process down to 14 of the best presenters at the Arena Meeting held on September 30th. Company presentations were followed by a Q&A session on economic, financial and technical issues. At the end of this Arena Meeting, presenters received more than 80 sign-ups for investor interest.

This next group of meetings for this new Start-Up Initiative hosted by Intesa SanPaolo in Milan will take place in January, April, June, September and November of next year. The meetings will be open to hear presentations by entrepreneurs from the U.S. as well as Europe. "We see this new network as an excellent channel for funding and business development in Europe for U.S. start-ups looking to seek resources and relationships abroad," says Dilts.

Corrado Passera, Chief Executive Officer of Intesa SanPaolo, stated at a recent press conference that the Initiative has a concrete structure which is a well-established process in the United States which could work to identify the future Googles of the world. The Initiative, explained Passera, is aimed at start-ups "that have an idea but who have difficulty obtaining the capital to achieve it."

Dilts explained that Intesa SanPaolo is a highly innovative financial institution which is committed to a long-term vision in support of its clients and Italian entrepreneurs generally. "We welcome Intesa's interest in working with us to establish a new angel investment network in Italy which combines leading-edge entrepreneurial education with our world-class angel investment process," says Dilts.

About Maverick Angels

Maverick Angels is a next generation angel network which takes an entrepreneurial approach to angel investing. The Group is very unique among angel investor networks in that it offers a highly acclaimed Maverick Angels Boot Camp for Entrepreneurs to proactively coach companies about what angels are looking for and how to grow a scalable business. Founded in 2006, Maverick Angels has launched Chapters in the Southern California region near Los Angeles in the South Bay (based in Palos Verdes Estates), Westlake Village and Santa Barbara. The Network has established an affiliation to share deal flow with other angel groups across the globe, and its investment focus includes early-stage opportunities from any industry which provides the possibility for a multiple return on investment. Maverick Angels also actively engages in social and charitable activities designed to build camaraderie and support entrepreneurship in our communities.

About Intesa SanPaolo

Intesa SanPaolo is a banking group resulting from the merger between Banca Intesa and SanPaolo IMI in 2007. It is a leader in the Italian financial market and has a strong international retail presence focused on Central-Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean basin in 13 countries. The Group brings together two major Italian banks with shared values and improves their opportunities for growth as well as enabling enhanced service for retail customers, significant support for development of business customers and an important contribution to growth in all the countries where it operates. Intesa SanPaolo has nearly 20 million customers internationally with more than 8.000 bank branches and a presence in 34 countries in the Mediterranean area and where Italian companies are most active, such as the United States, Russia, China and India. The bank has a market capitalization of more than US$56 Billion.