Acquisition Through Advisory

Advisory that creates
real outcomes.

Operators advising operators. We partner with entrepreneurs and investors who are building something real — and we work from the inside to make it happen.

Our services Our approach

Zürich · Milan

What we believe

We're not a
consultancy firm.
Not even close.

Advisory is our tool — not our product. We use it to bring real solutions to market, by partnering with best-in-class entrepreneurs, operators and investors. We deliver value first. Where the relationship earns it, deeper commitment follows.

Everyone at Lionycs has built, scaled or exited businesses. Our playbooks are empirical — built from direct experience, tested on real companies, refined over time. Not borrowed from anywhere.

Integrated approach

Strategic Advisory × Execution × Capital

Strategic Advisory

M&A — buy & sell side ↓
Business strategy ↓
Business planning ↓

Execution

Financial Co-Pilot ↓
Revenue & Go-to-Market ↓
Operations & Execution ↓

Capital

Co-Founder ↓
Co-Investors ↓
Club deal structures ↓

Hands-on Cutting-edge Tech Personalized Few projects. High exposure.

Advisory services

What we do

M&A — Buy & Sell Side

From target identification and due diligence to negotiation and closing. We've sat on both sides of the table as principals — which changes how we protect your interests and read the room.

Buy-SideSell-SideCarve-OutDue DiligenceCapital Structuring

Business Strategy

A very active board member — with a network, who challenges assumptions and stays through execution. Not a periodic check-in. Present when it matters.

Board SupportGrowth StrategyGo-to-MarketStrategic Planning

Business Planning

Financial modelling, market sizing, competitive positioning, investor narrative. Plans built on real economics — not best-case assumptions.

Financial ModellingInvestor ReadinessRoadmapping

Proprietary tooling. Sales Governance & Analytics, DD Models, FP&A module — built on real client work, not in advance of it.

Fractional leadership

Fractional CxO

C-level capability, embedded. Operator mindset, not management consulting.

CFO Financial Co-Pilot

Strategic finance beyond reporting — cash management, capital structure, fundraising prep, investor relations. In every major decision, not just the quarterly review.

FP&ACash ManagementFundraisingInvestor Relations

CRO Revenue & Go-to-Market

Pricing, sales ops, tooling, commercialisation, analytics and governance. The full revenue stack — built to compound.

Go-to-MarketPricingSales OpsRevenue AnalyticsTooling

COO Operations & Execution

Org design, process architecture, operating rhythm. Strategic priorities made executable — week by week.

Org DesignProcess ArchitectureOperating RhythmScaling

How we operate

Our principles

Advisory first. Capital follows.

Value through advisory, always. Deeper commitment — including capital — is a consequence of the relationship, not a sales pitch.

Operators, not consultants

No one here advises on something they haven't done. The playbooks are ours — built from real businesses, not borrowed from case studies.

Proprietary technology

FP&A module, Sales Governance framework, DD models — purpose-built tools that give clients a structural edge.

Few clients. Full commitment.

In the room when decisions are made. Not on a monthly call.

Integrated disciplines — Advisory, Execution, Capital — deployed as a single platform

Companies in current client portfolio across Switzerland, Italy and the UK

Theoretical frameworks. Every tool we apply has been validated on a real business first.

"We partner with the companies we'd want to build — and that changes everything about how we show up."

Portfolio & clients

Who we work with

Founder

Paolo Ortolani

CEO

Paolo doesn't show up as an advisor. He shows up as someone who wants to build something with you. He has founded, scaled and exited operating businesses; sat on both sides of M&A transactions, raised and deployed equity and non-dilutive capital.

His Executive MBA from the University of Zurich gave him the language for what he'd already learned by doing — and the network to do more of it.

When he takes on an engagement, he is genuinely inside it. He asks the questions a co-founder asks. He pushes back the way a trusted partner does. And he stays.

Executive MBA — University of Zurich

Founded, scaled and exited operating businesses

M&A experience as principal — buy and sell side

Raised and deployed equity and non-dilutive capital

Based between Zürich and Milan

Also at Lionycs

Capital & Investment

Alongside advisory, Lionycs selectively acquires and invests in companies through a club deal structure — operating SMEs and founder-led businesses where hands-on governance from day one creates value. Off-market sourcing, operational due diligence, capital deployed at a discount to intrinsic value.

If you're considering a transition, an exit, or looking for a capital partner who stays involved — we welcome the conversation.

Get in touch

Let's have a
real conversation.

No 12-slide discovery calls. If there's a fit, it becomes clear quickly.

Direct contact

Advisory that createsreal outcomes.

We're not aconsultancy firm.Not even close.