Solar kit designer and distributor, Qotto, has raised $8 million in a Series A equity-debt round to accelerate current reach beyond existing markets in Burkina Faso and Benin.
Qotto plans to kickstart operations in Ivory Coast by next month as it stands to utilize opportunities for essential services and large Solar Home Systems offerings.
The Series A equity-debt round was led by the IBL group, a billion-dollar conglomerate headquartered in Mauritius with business interests in several sectors including energy, financial services, logistics, distribution, and engineering. The investor is working on East African expansion, following the signing of a partnership agreement to offer off-grid solutions in the region.
Other investors in the round were Off-Grid Energy Access Fund (FEI-OGEF), Cordaid, and Qotto’s existing investors.
Qotto’s pay-to-own model makes its products reachable to individuals in Sub-Saharan Africa facing the challenge of underdeveloped national power grids.
The consistent pace of development in Ivory Coast relative to the broader West Africa region is one of Qotto’s drive into the country. Another is the result of the tested and optimized operations and services in Benin and Burkina Faso, which asserted Qotto to be well prepared for a market entry. According to the company, customers who have been able to test the Qotto products in the country, have expressed a need and desire to see Qotto enter the Ivory Coast market.
Included in its plans is the introduction of new products such as financial services and internet access hotspots, as Qotto evolves into an all-rounded essential services operator. While the planned financial services include micro-insurance, micro-credit and micro-savings products, designed in collaboration with partners such as SUNU, a large insurer in West Africa, the internet hotspots will be located in high-foot traffic areas like the shops, restaurants or bars.
