South Africa’s Solar Leasing Startup Sun Exchange Secures $2.5m Funding to Scale
South African P2P solar leasing startup Sun Exchange, has raised a further $2.5 million in funding in form of a convertible note to help it scale more quickly.
The funding was secured from ARPF, a Mauritian private equity fund advised by London-based ARCH Emerging Markets Partners, which was the lead investor in the startup’s Series A.
Sun Exchange was launched in 2015. The startup aims to enable users around the world to buy remotely-located solar cells that power schools, businesses, and other organizations.
Sun Exchange has been able to power up its offering by building a community of thousands of members across hundreds of countries and brought solar power to dozens of South African schools, businesses, and organizations.
Abraham Cambridge, founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Sun Exchange said: “Addressing the climate emergency is the top priority on the world’s agenda, as evidenced by last week’s conversations at the UN General Assembly leading up to COP26. While policy action and diplomacy are critical at this juncture, the private sector and individuals have a crucial role to play.
Abraham also added that Sun Exchange is addressing a lifetime challenge through its service.
“Powered by our global community, Sun Exchange closes the solar finance gap for organizations in Africa, addressing the challenge of our lifetime while supporting sustainable economic growth. We are delighted that ARCH has reaffirmed its belief in Sun Exchange and our mission through this investment,” said Abraham.
William Barry, managing director of ARCH speaking, said that Sun Exchange demonstrates momentum as a fast-emerging leader eliminating obstacles to solar proliferation in Africa.
“ARCH is committed to working with our portfolio companies and supporting their growth, and we are proud to continue partnering with Sun Exchange on its journey to accelerate the global energy transition,” William said.
Sun Exchange intends to use the latest round to continue scaling its success using its crowd-based solar leasing platform to facilitate solar power for small-to-medium organizations in Sub-Saharan Africa.