Rooftop solar financing company Credit Fair has raised $5 million (₹415 million) from the $75 million (₹6.22 billion) ‘Green Basket Bond’ issued by Symbiotics Investments.

Credit Fair intends to use the funds to finance 2,500 rooftop solar projects, targeting residential customers, micro, small, and medium enterprises, and housing societies in tier-2 and tier-3 cities. It also aims to utilize the funds to provide financing options to underserved communities and make renewable energy accessible.

The UK’s development finance institution, British International Investment (BII) has subscribed to the bond. BII aims to promote renewable energy adoption across Asia and Africa.

Credit Fair has onboarded over 1,000 solar installers and is funding their customers. It has also financed over 8,000 rooftop solar customers since its inception.

The company monitors the end-use of loans to ensure their deployment for projects such as rooftop solar installations.

Credit Fair is supported by venture capital firms LC Nueva AIF and Capital A. It has also secured debt funding from multiple financial institutions, including SBI, SIDBI, IDFC First Bank, AU Bank, and Oikocredit.

Rooftop solar installations have seen a significant increase over the last year after the introduction of the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana. The program aims to install rooftop solar panels in 10 million households by 2027. At the end of the first year, installations under the program have crossed 800,000.

Last July, the Asian Development Bank approved loans of $240.5 million to finance rooftop solar systems in India. The financing was provided to the State Bank of India and the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development to offer loans to developers and end-users for installing rooftop solar systems across the country.

Several public and private sector financial institutions extend loans for rooftop solar installations in both the residential and commercial and industrial sectors at competitive interest rates.