Anemos Private Investments, investment holding of the Samhita group — the family office of Paolo Basilico, founder of Kairos Partners — completed on July 21, 2026, the acquisition of the majority stake of Terre di Puglia, producer of taralli and baked snacks based in Andria (BT).
The operation, the first private equity investment of the Milan-based holding, initiates a declared project of buy-and-build: to build, through successive mergers, the first Italian group of savory snacks of the regional tradition (Il Sole 24 Ore, 2026; Borsa Italiana–Radiocor, 2026).
The operation
Anemos acquires the majority of the capital of Terre di Puglia, founded in Andria in 2003 by Nicola Visaggio, who is still the CEO of the company. The entrepreneur reinvests in the operation, retains a significant stake, and continues to lead the company, supported by managers Michele Zagaria and Massimo Sadino (Financecommunity, 2026). Continuity of company governance and the entry of financial capital thus combine in a partnership declared to be long-term.
Two financial entities supporting. Intesa Sanpaolo finances the acquisition and acts as agent bank of the pool. Amundi SGR, through the fund Amundi AgrItaly III, contributes to financing and acquires a minority stake in the company (Legalcommunity, 2026). The value of the operation has not been disclosed.
The relationship between Amundi and the Apulian group began in July 2025, when the AgrItaly fund had subscribed a minibond senior guaranteed by 3.5 million euros, fixed coupon of 7% and maturity 2031, issued by Italysnack, the group's production company, to finance the new plant (BeBeez, 2025; EFI Observatory–Politecnico di Milano, 2026). A gradual process — first debt, then equity — which is effectively equivalent to a multi-year due diligence.
Terre di Puglia, profile and fundamentals
The Andria group produces and markets baked snacks salty and sweet — also in organic, vegan and kosher versions — both under its own brand and with private label for large retail chains, in Italy and abroad (EFI Observatory–Politecnico di Milano, 2026). The flagship product is the Pugliese tarallo available in numerous variants, alongside mini crackers, mini grissini, flatbreads, small bruschettas and square bread (Terre di Puglia, n.d.).
The production company Italysnack Srl closed the 2024 financial statements with 8.3 million euros in revenues and 31 employees, in constant growth (Atoka–Cerved, 2026). Theexport covers the main European and international markets, reaching China, Japan and Australia.
In Andria a new plant is nearing completion designed to triple production capacity and streamline processes. The factory will be the industrial base of the plan: first scale, then scope (Il Sole 24 Ore, 2026).
Anemos, own and 'patient' capital
Anemos Private Investments was established in Milan at the end of 2024 as a holding company equipped with capital of its own, defined as ‘patient‘, within the Samhita group, the family office founded by Paolo Basilico in 2019 after leaving Kairos (FIRSTonline, 2024; Samhita Investments, n.d.).
The model proposes itself as an entrepreneurial alternative to classic financial intermediation: direct investments in Italian SMEs active in profitable niches, led by entrepreneurs who remain involved in the capital, focusing on sectors where the Made in Italy is recognized abroad, food & beverage first and foremost. The absence of a fund with a predetermined maturity frees the investment time horizon from the typical constraints of traditional private equity.
For Pietro Basilico, investment manager of Anemos, the objective is to consolidate international leadership while maintaining roots and authenticity of the product. Visaggio, for his part, points to Terre di Puglia as a ‘aggregating platform on the territory‘, open to the development of the entire Apulian agri-food supply chain (Il Sole 24 Ore, 2026).
Buy-and-build in Italian style
The Anemos operation is characterized as a buy-and-built in Italian style: acquire a first company, strengthen it and use it as a platform to integrate other excellent companies in the same sector. The main way, one would say, to overcome the limits related to the high fragmentation of the Made in Italy food sector.
An exemplary case of this approach, which we have already written about, is that of Probios. The Tuscan organic group, under the direction of the fund Agreen Capital, has aggregated in a few years six historic brands of Italian health food — Probios, Baule Volante, La Finestra sul Cielo, ViviBio, Fior di Loto and Zer% — until the rebranding into Healtion (2026), with integrated supply chain, declared M&A strategy and ambition of European leadership in healthy food. Same logic: a national platform built for successive aggregations in a fragmented sector, with brands maintaining identity and positioning.
In the same direction, on a larger scale and with listed industrial capital, moves NewPrinces, which with theacquisition of Plasmon from Kraft Heinz (closing 31.12.2025) has added baby food to a progressively expanding multi-category platform.
Comparison with classic models
Different is the scheme of traditional private equity, where the company passes from fund to fund at each investment cycle. The most recent example, also subject of our analysis, is IRCA: the Gallarate giant of pastry and ice cream ingredients, sold in June 2026 by Advent a CVC Capital Partners (fund IX), with a valuation estimated by the press around 3 billion euros. A secondary buyout classic, with a predefined holding period and scheduled exit.
I two models are not absolutely alternative — CVC itself announces acquisitions add-on for IRCA — but differ in incentive structure: permanent capital and entrepreneur reinvesting while remaining in charge in the first case, fund cycle and ownership rotation in the second. For agri-food companies with a rooted history in the territory and efficient management, the difference is not insignificant.
Prospects
The European sector of savory snacks is growing and the Made in Italy enjoys a recognizable advantage for the identity of the products, often associated with the tradition of Italian cuisine also celebrated by UNESCO, as well as the quality of the ingredients and the clean label.
The operation meanwhile confirms a trend of recent years: the Italian private capital — family offices, entrepreneurial holdings, family-controlled groups — return as protagonists in the consolidation of the national agri-food sector, previously dominated for decades by foreign funds.
Dario Dongo
References
Economic and financial press
BeBeez. (2025, September 1). Italysnack, which produces the well-known Terre di Puglia taralli, issues minibonds of 3.5 million euros. It is subscribed by the Amundi SGR fund. https://bebeez.it/private-debt/italysnack-che-produce-i-noti-taralli-terre-di-puglia-emette-minibond-da-35-mln-euro-lo-sottoscrive-il-fondo-di-amundi-sgr/
Borsa Italiana–Radiocor. (2026, July 21). Private equity: Anemos by Paolo Basilico bets on the taralli of Terre di Puglia. https://www.borsaitaliana.it/borsa/notizie/radiocor/finanza/dettaglio/nRC_21072026_1223_323155077.html
Financecommunity. (2026, July 21). Anemos Private Investments (Paolo Basilico) acquires the majority of Terre di Puglia. All the advisors. https://financecommunity.it/anemos-private-investments-paolo-basilico-rileva-la-maggioranza-di-terre-di-puglia-tutti-gli-advisor/
FIRSTonline. (2024, October 24). Paolo Basilico (former Kairos) returns to the field and launches Anemos, an investment boutique focused on companies aiming at foreign markets. https://www.firstonline.info/paolo-basilico-ex-kairos-torna-in-campo-e-lancia-anemos-boutique-di-investimento-con-locchio-alle-imprese-che-puntano-sullestero/
Il Sole 24 Ore. (2026, July 22). Anemos buys Terre di Puglia and prepares the Italian hub of salty snacks. https://www.ilsole24ore.com/art/anemos-compra-terre-puglia-e-prepara-polo-italiano-snack-salati-AJLNAKR
Legalcommunity. (2026, July 21). Anemos enters Terre di Puglia: the deal aims to create the Italian leader of salty snacks. The lawyers involved. https://legalcommunity.it/anemos-entra-in-terre-di-puglia-il-deal-punta-a-creare-il-leader-italiano-degli-snack-salati-i-legali-in-campo/
Economic data and reports
Atoka–Cerved. (2026). Italysnack Srl — company data and financial statement 2024. https://atoka.io/public/it/azienda/italysnack-srl/f45fe7f8624c
Osservatory Entrepreneurship Finance & Innovation, Politecnico di Milano. (2026). 12th Italian Report on minibonds. https://www.osservatoriefi.it/efi/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/reportminibond2026.pdf
Corporate sources
Samhita Investments. (n.d.). About us – Anemos. https://samhitainvestments.com/en/about-us-anemos/
Terre di Puglia. (n.d.). Home. https://terredipuglia.it/
Dario Dongo, lawyer and journalist, PhD in international food law, founder of WIISE (FARE - GIFT – Food Times) and Égalité.
