The capital will support Yellow’s growth across Malawi, Zambia, Uganda, Rwanda, Madagascar, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Nigeria. The companies did not disclose the size of the round.

The transaction deepens Convergence Partners’ relationship with an existing portfolio company that has now served more than one million customers.

Yellow aims to use the new funding to expand access to electricity and internet-enabled devices as it works toward a target of serving 10 million customers by 2030.

“The capital allows us to broaden our impact on the continent,” Yellow founder and CEO Mike Heyink said. According to the funding announcement, Yellow employs more than 200 people and uses AI-enabled credit assessment to evaluate customers seeking financing.

Yellow’s model allows customers to spread the cost of smartphones and solar equipment over time through asset-backed credit.

This approach reduces the upfront cost of products that can be difficult for low-income households and small businesses to purchase through a single payment.

Heyink and Maya Stewart founded Yellow in Malawi in 2018, initially focusing on solar energy before expanding into smartphone financing.

Convergence Partners led the company’s $14 million Series B round in June 2023, with participation from the Energy Entrepreneurs Growth Fund, managed by Triple Jump, and Platform Investment Partners. That round brought Yellow’s disclosed debt and equity financing at the time to $45 million.

Yellow had reached about 400,000 customers across five markets when it announced the Series B.

Its expansion to more than one million customers and seven key markets indicates that the company has increased both its geographic coverage and customer base since Convergence Partners’ initial investment.

“Our decision to lead this funding round reflects our continued belief in the business, its management team and the opportunity ahead,” Convergence Partners CEO Brandon Doyle said.

The investment addresses a large energy-access market that remains difficult to serve through national grids alone.

The International Energy Agency reported that sub-Saharan Africa accounted for eight out of every 10 people worldwide without electricity in 2024.

Although new connections are increasing, population growth, high electricity costs and limited access to affordable financing continue to slow progress in many countries.

Smartphone affordability presents a similar commercial challenge. Four of Yellow’s markets—the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria, Rwanda and Uganda—were among six African countries selected in March 2026 for GSMA-led pilots of entry-level 4G smartphones priced near $40.

The initiative reflects the gap between the availability of mobile broadband networks and consumers’ ability to purchase compatible devices.

By financing both smartphones and off-grid solar products, Yellow is targeting two connected barriers to participation in Africa’s digital economy: access to devices and access to reliable power.

Smartphones can give households and small businesses access to mobile money, online marketplaces, communications and digital services, while solar systems can provide electricity in communities where grid connections are unavailable or unreliable.

For investors, Yellow’s expansion will place greater attention on its ability to maintain credit quality, control financing costs and manage distribution across markets with different regulatory and currency conditions.

The Series C gives the company additional capital to pursue scale, but its progress toward 10 million customers will depend on disciplined lending and continued access to debt and equity funding.