Sun King, the world’s largest off-grid solar energy company, has secured a KES 20.1 billion (USD 156 million) securitisation deal. This is the largest ever in Sub-Saharan Africa outside South Africa. This local currency financing will expand access to solar power for an estimated 1.4 million low-income households and businesses across Kenya.
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The transaction was arranged and structured by Citi with Stanbic Bank Kenya Ltd as placement agent. It is is backed by a consortium of five commercial banks including ABSA, Citi, Co-operative Bank of Kenya, KCB Bank Kenya, and Stanbic. Three development finance institutions took part and they are British International Investment (BII), FMO (the Dutch development bank), and Norfund (Norwegian Investment Fund).
This is Sun King’s second and largest KES-denominated securitisation that builds on a $130 million deal completed in 2023.
“Millions of off-grid households have switched to solar thanks to small ‘pay-as-you-go’ loans. This deal signals a major turning point for green energy finance in Africa,” said Anish Thakkar, Co-Founder of Sun King.
Sun King’s pay-as-you-go model allows customers to purchase solar home systems and smartphones through daily mobile money payments starting at just KES 25 (USD 0.19). To date, the company has issued $1.3 billion in solar loans to nearly 10 million customers across Africa.
The new securitisation enables Sun King to convert future mobile repayments into investable financial assets.
“This securitisation demonstrates the effectiveness of pay-as-you-go models and the power of development finance to mobilise private capital,” said Jorge Rubio Nava, Citi’s Global Head of Social Finance.
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Also Read: Sun King Opens First Customer Experience Centre in Mombasa
