SmartSolar brings total funding to $3.15 million with European financing

The round includes a $300,000 senior loan from the SECO Startup Fund, a development finance initiative of Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO).

This marks the SECO Start-up Fund’s first investment globally under its new management by iGravity and Seedstars. The loan aims to be a catalyst for further debt providers from private markets and in this case, already resulted in a further $1 million debt facility for SmartSolar provided by German travel company SKR Reisen, a pioneer of sustainable travel.

The new debt brings SmartSolar’s total funding to date to $3.15 million, including a previously announced $1.85 million seed round backed by Picus Capital, 2degrees, and Iterative.

While the equity round put SmartSolar on the map in 2025, the bigger story now is access to institutional debt. The SECO Startup Fund provides the first loan under a development finance initiative.

“Equity helped us build the platform. Debt is what allows us to scale,” said founder and CEO Kevin Junker. “Having the SECO Start-up Fund as our first institutional lender is a strong signal that this model works commercially and from an impact perspective.”

“SmartSolar exemplifies the type of entrepreneur-led, impact-driven business that supports both climate action and economic development,” said Christian Brändli, head of Private Sector Development at SECO. “This investment demonstrates Switzerland’s commitment to backing commercially viable solutions that address real market gaps in emerging economies.”

Vietnam’s small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which constitute the vast majority of businesses in the country, often spend 10–20 per cent of operating costs on electricity. But most lack access to affordable financing for rooftop solar systems.

SmartSolar tackles that with a zero-upfront-cost model. The company finances, installs, and maintains rooftop systems, enabling its clients to access solar power at 15–25 per cent below grid prices under long-term contracts.

Since launching in 2024, SmartSolar has deployed nearly 4 MWp of capacity across customers ranging from factories to automotive workshops and fitness centres.

The new $1.3 million in debt will fund additional installations and help the startup build the track record required to raise larger structured facilities from development finance institutions and private credit funds.

Rooftop solar adoption in Southeast Asia still lags global benchmarks despite abundant sunlight. SmartSolar positions itself less as a traditional installer and more as a financing platform for SMEs, a segment often overlooked by banks.

The company plans to double down on Southern Vietnam while exploring regional expansion into Thailand, Cambodia, and the Philippines.

If successful, SmartSolar could tap into what founders describe as a billion-dollar SME financing gap and prove that climate infrastructure for small businesses can be both profitable and bankable.

SmartSolar bags $1.85 million in seed funding SmartSolar, a Vietnam-based rooftop solar solution provider, has wrapped up a $1.85 million investment in its seed funding round, co-led by Picus Capital and 2degrees, with participation from Iterative.

Criteria is clear to ensure value in Vietnam’s rooftop solar power With rooftop solar emerging as a critical tool for Vietnamese manufacturers to meet global green supply chain demands, Pham Dang An, deputy general director of Vu Phong Energy Group, told VIR’s Nguyen Thu that the race is now on to resolve financing, policy, and storage barriers.

Verdant Energy acquires 11MW rooftop solar portfolio in Vietnam Singapore-based Verdant Energy has announced the landmark acquisition of an 11 MW rooftop solar portfolio in Vietnam.