M-KOPA, a leading asset financing platform in Africa, has secured over $250 million in new funding to support its expansion and operations. This funding includes $55 million in equity and over $200 million in debt financing. The significant capital injection highlights the company’s strong performance and solid fundamentals. With this latest funding round, M-KOPA has raised a total of $245 million in equity funding since its establishment in 2011. Japanese-based trading house Sumitomo Corporation led the growth equity capital, contributing $36.5 million. Other investors, including Blue Haven Initiative, Lightrock, Broadscale Group, and Latitude, also participated in the equity round.

Why The Investors Invested

Sumitomo Corporation and other investors chose to invest in M-KOPA due to their shared vision and confidence in the company’s potential. Sumitomo, known for its infrastructural deals in Africa, believes in the continent’s progress through technology-enabled financial and digital services. They see M-KOPA as a valuable partner in achieving this vision. Additionally, M-KOPA’s innovative business model and track record of empowering underbanked customers resonated with the investors. The investors recognize the importance of M-KOPA’s mission to bridge the gender gap in financial inclusion and provide access to life-enhancing products and services for women in sub-Saharan Africa.

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A Look at What M-KOPA Does

Founded in 2011 by Nick Hughes, Chad Larson, Jesse Moore, M-KOPA operates as an asset financing platform that enables underbanked customers in Africa to access “productive assets” through digital micropayments. The company offers financing for products such as smartphones, solar power systems, loans, and health insurance. Its flexible credit model allows customers to make a small deposit and repay their purchases through micro-installments, helping them establish credit histories over time. M-KOPA operates in Kenya, Uganda, Ghana, and Nigeria, and its customer base currently stands at three million.

The company’s focus extends beyond financial services, as it aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Kenya and Uganda by promoting the use of solar products. M-KOPA has already sold over a million solar home systems, leading to a reduction of 2 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions. In line with its commitment to gender equality, M-KOPA strives to close the gender gap in its consumer base. While currently, around 40% of its customers are women, the company aims to exceed 60% representation.

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Looking ahead, M-KOPA plans to expand into the South African market and explore opportunities in electric mobility. It intends to pilot operations in South Africa and test electric motorcycles in Nairobi. The company believes that financing options will play a vital role in driving the adoption of electric motorbikes in the future. Through its innovative approach to asset financing and its dedication to financial inclusion and sustainability, M-KOPA aims to make a lasting impact on economic progress and empower underbanked individuals across Africa.

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer, who has several years of experience working in Africa’s burgeoning tech startup industry. He has closed multi-million dollar deals bordering on venture capital, private equity, intellectual property (trademark, patent or design, etc.), mergers and acquisitions, in countries such as in the Delaware, New York, UK, Singapore, British Virgin Islands, South Africa, Nigeria etc. He’s also a corporate governance and cross-border data privacy and tax expert. 
As an award-winning writer and researcher, he is passionate about telling the African startup story, and is one of the continent’s pioneers in this regard