With a 10 million euros venture debt loan, the European Investment Bank (EIB) is investing in Blubrake, an Italian scale-up specialised in the development of next-generation ABS systems for electric bicycles. Thanks to the EIB’s support, Blubrake is targeting international expansion and leadership in the field of anti-lock braking systems for e-bikes, so that the technology becomes an essential safety standard for all light electric vehicles, as has happened in the automotive sector. The EIB funding will help make light electric vehicles safer and facilitate the mass-market adoption of ABS in order to drastically reduce the frequency of accidents for cyclists and pedestrians.

Blubrake’s ABS prevents loss of control of the bicycle in the event of sudden braking, which is the cause of 60% of e-bike accidents, and locking of the front wheel, which is responsible for 25% of falls. ABS significantly improves braking on both high-adhesion terrain and slippery terrain by controlling braking power, to stop the front wheel from locking and the back wheel from lifting, thus maintaining the bicycle's stability and preventing it from overturning.

The EIB funding will also be used to set up a new assembly line and will facilitate Blubrake’s increased production capacity to cope with the company’s rapid international expansion.

“Operations like the one signed with Blubrake today also demonstrate the EIB’s readiness to support Italian startups and the innovation of our financial products, such as venture debt,” said EIB Vice-President Gelsomina Vigliotti. “We are very proud of this operation with the EIB, which confirms the importance of safety systems such as ABS in the mobility landscape and demonstrates the quality of the Blubrake team and the company’s potential,” said Blubrake Founder and CEO Fabio Todeschini.

Blubrake is among the first enterprises developed within e-Novia industrial group, which comprises other startups focused on urba mobility and smart services, such as Yape. "The results and advancement now being achieved by Blubrake demonstrate the success of our industrial group model which, using the most innovative technologies as a springboard, transforms intellectual property into enterprises and brings them to the market by generating tangible industrial assets,” concluded e-Novia CEO Vincenzo Russi.