SA energy startup Yellow raises undisclosed Series C funding round

Yellow, a South Africa-based solar energy and digital devices asset financier, has raised an undisclosed Series C funding round to grow its customer base, per Disrupt Africa.

The round was led by Convergence Partners, the same firm that led Yellow's US$14 million Series B in 2023. The capital is earmarked to support expansion across Yellow's key markets: Malawi, Zambia, Uganda, Rwanda, Madagascar, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Nigeria. No additional investors were named and the amount was not disclosed.

Founded in 2018 by Mike Heyink and Maya Stewart, Yellow focuses on last-mile distribution of affordable "pay as you go" (PAYG) solar home systems to low-income rural households. The company has since broadened its product range to include digital devices such as smartphones, and uses AI-enabled credit scoring to assess customers and provide financing. It employs more than 200 staff and has served over one million customers with access to financing for off-grid solar and smartphones, according to Disrupt Africa.

"Yellow is delighted to deepen our partnership with Convergence — the capital allows us to broaden our impact on the continent," CEO Mike Heyink said, as quoted by Disrupt Africa. "Having recently served customer number one million, their investment puts us on track to achieve our target of serving 10m customers with access to electricity and internet by 2030." Brandon Doyle, CEO of Convergence Partners, said the firm remained confident in Yellow's business and management team, adding that Yellow had "demonstrated significant progress" since the initial investment.

With a stated goal of reaching 10 million customers by 2030, Yellow's near-term focus will be scaling operations across its existing seven-country African footprint. No specific product roadmap changes or hiring targets were disclosed alongside the announcement.