Pillar secures 3.2 million euros pre-seed

The Italian fintech startup Pillar has closed the largest pre-seed financing round in the construction tech sector in Italy to date for 3.2 million euros. The round was led by the French early-stage fund Emblem, which has already invested in scale-ups such as Lovable.

In addition to Emblem, international investors such as Pareto (USA), Plug and Play (USA) and Kima Ventures (France) as well as a number of Italian funds, including B Heroes, Vento, Eden Ventures and IAG, also participated. There is also a group of experienced founders and business angels, including the brains behind Aria, Convelio, 1000farmacie and Futura.

Digital tailwind for a key industry

The construction industry is one of the most important sectors of the Italian economy. In 2023, the sector contributed 11.4% to national GDP and was responsible for around a third of growth in the past two years (Bank of Italy, Annual Report 2024).

At the same time, the sector continues to be resistant to digitalization. According to Censis, only 20 percent of construction companies use software solutions for construction site management, while around 60 percent still work without digital tools. This is exactly where Pillar comes in.

Financial management in real time

Pillar is developing a SaaS platform that provides construction companies with a real-time overview of income, expenses and margins, both at company level and for individual projects.

The solution combines artificial intelligence for automated controls and bank reconciliation with the ability to integrate data from multiple sources. This includes everything from tax documents and bank accounts to construction site-related information such as proof of delivery, working hours and construction progress. This can be recorded directly via WhatsApp-supported AI assistants.

"This investment - at one of the highest valuations ever achieved in an Italian pre-seed round - shows the confidence in our product and the opportunities in a traditionally under-digitized market."

Gabriel Guinea Montalvo, Co-Founder and CEO Pillar

Since its market launch, Pillar has already acquired over 100 customers, managed 350 projects and processed 40,000 invoices. The team currently comprises 15 employees. The start-up now wants to use the fresh capital to accelerate product development and market entry and expand the team in a targeted manner. Pillar plans to serve 2,500 companies and grow to 30 employees by 2027.

Investors rely on industry expertise

For lead investor Emblem, market size and dynamics are particularly important.

The construction industry is currently experiencing strong pressure to digitalize, driven by generational change, efficiency requirements and more complex regulation. Pillar has the knowledge and skills to successfully tackle this challenge.

Guillaume Durao, General Partner Emblem

The founders Gabriel Guinea Montalvo, Paolo Tarsia Incuria and Lorenzo Demaio bring international tech and startup experience and want to develop Pillar into the leading European fintech provider for the construction industry.