Webinar 3.3.2026: Is Growth Debt Right for Your Company?

Raising capital is rarely just about how much - it’s about what kind. Many founders default to equity without fully understanding when growth debt could be a smarter alternative, while others consider debt too early and take on unnecessary risk.

Date: March 3rd, 2026
Time: 9:00 AM GMT+2 (Finnish time)

In this webinar, private credit professional Alexandre Bartolini, Founder of GPI Europe, walks through how founders should actually think about financing decisions. Participants will gain a clear framework for deciding between equity and growth debt, learn when debt supports growth and when it adds risk, why timing and use of proceeds matter, and how capital choices affect dilution, control, and long-term outcomes — providing practical tools and real-world clarity, not just theory.

Registration:
Please register by sending an email to sanna.laine@grannenfeltfinance.fi no later than Friday, 27 February 2026. The webinar link will be sent to registered participants on Monday, 2 March 2026.

Alexandre Bartolini
Founder, GPI Europe, www.gpi-europe.com

Alexandre Bartolini is a seasoned Private Credit professional with a track record exceeding $1.6bn across multiple jurisdictions and stages. From US leveraged finance to European growth debt and fintech specialty finance, he has operated across the full capital spectrum. He is now launching GPI Europe (www.gpi-europe.com), Europe’s first solo-GP Growth Lender dedicated to early-stage European B2B.

Agenda

• Why founders often ask the wrong question about financing (5 mins)

• When growth debt can make sense — and what must be true for debt to add value (8 mins)

• When venture/growth debt does not make sense — clear cases where equity is the right tool (8 mins)

• Live Excel simulation: simplified financing scenarios (10 mins)

• Live Excel simulation: same company, same outcomes — different capital decisions and dilution trade-offs (5 mins)

• Closing: A practical checklist founders should use before engaging with any lender (5 mins)

What You Will Take Away

• A clearer framework to decide if and when growth debt belongs in your capital stack

• An understanding of both the upside and the downsides

• Why timing and use of proceeds matter

• A practical way to think about dilution and trade-offs beyond valuation headlines
  
  

This session is designed to provide concrete tools and real-world clarity, not just theory.

About the Host
Grannenfelt Finance is a boutique financial advisory firm focused on supporting growth companies in their capital raising and strategic financing decisions. With deep experience in private markets and strong relationships with institutional investors across the Nordics and Europe, Grannenfelt Finance helps founders navigate funding processes with clarity, structure, and access to the right capital partners.

Full Speaker Introduction
Alexandre Bartolini is a Private Credit professional and Bootstrap Europe’s first alumni, with a track record exceeding $1.6bn across multiple jurisdictions and stages.

He began his career in the US in Leveraged Finance, working on large PE-backed transactions, before moving to London to focus on Specialty Financing in Fintech, with notable investments in Funding Circle, Atom Bank, and ThinCats.

He then transitioned to early-stage financing, joining Bootstrap Europe as their first employee, where he gained experience in Growth Debt and executed multiple transactions across Europe.

Subsequently, he moved to Spain to lead the international expansion of Inveready, one of the country’s largest Alternative Investment Managers, across Growth Debt and Small Caps.

Alexandre is now the Founder of GPI Europe (www.gpi-europe.com), Europe’s first solo-GP Growth Lender dedicated to early-stage European B2B, a segment largely underserved as most lenders have moved upmarket. In addition, he serves as an Investment Committee member of a Spanish Pre-Seed fund and was an early investor in Monzo.