About E3 Capital
E3 Capital is a venture capital firm founded in 2015. It is primarily based out of Nairobi, Kenya. As of Jan 2026, E3 Capital is an active investor, having invested in 29 companies, with 5 new investments in the last 12 months. It primarily invests in Seed round in Kenya based startups. Its investments are spread across a wide range of sectors from Enterprise Applications to Real Estate and Construction Tech and Food and Agriculture Tech. Most recently it participated in the $***** Seed round of GoCab Overall, E3 Capital portfolio has seen 2 acquisitions, namely PEG Africa and PayGo Energy. A lot of funds co-invest with E3 Capital, with names like FMO sharing a substantial percentage of its portfolio. E3 Capital has team of 25 people including 4 partners.Key Metrics
Team Members
Portfolio Sectors
Rounds of Entry
Seed, Series A & 2 more
Portfolio Acquisitions
Portfolio Soonicorns
E3 Capital's List of Top Investments
E3 Capital has a portfolio of 29 companies. Their most notable investments are in Mawingu and SolarX.Their portfolio spans across Kenya, Ghana, South Africa and 13 more locations. They have invested in Enterprise Applications, Real Estate and Construction Tech, Food and Agriculture Tech and 13 other sectors, across stages such as Seed, Series A and 2 more. Here is the list of top investments by E3 Capital:1. d light
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Key facts about d light
- Founded Year: 2004
- Location: Nairobi (Kenya)
- Stage: Series E
- Total Funding till date: $118M
- Employee Count: 107 as on Feb 28, 2025
- Investors: Shell, Nexus Venture Partners and 38 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Conventional Debt, Feb 20, 2024, $*****
2. Plentify
Provider of SaaS-driven and AI grid optimizers for building management. Its device can be attached to home water heaters that use AI to match users' energy needs in the grid. The platform provides solutions for industries that include property companies and body corporates, solar and battery companies, utilities and municipalities, and more.
Key facts about Plentify
- Founded Year: 2008
- Location: Cape Town (South Africa)
- Stage: Series A
- Total Funding till date: $15M
- Employee Count: 23 as on Jul 01, 2024
- Investors: Third Sphere, Endeavor and 10 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Series A, Nov 18, 2025, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
Zola Electric offers solar installation and upgradation services for rural areas in Africa. Has a proprietary software platform, Surge, that claims to offer personalized services for customers. Services include engineering, installation, financing, commissioning and others. Specializes in Pay-As-You-Go systems.
Key facts about ZOLA Electric
- Founded Year: 2011
- Location: Amsterdam (Netherlands)
- Stage: Series E
- Total Funding till date: $158M
- Employee Count: 573 as on Mar 31, 2026
- Investors: IFC, Helios and 29 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Conventional Debt, Sep 18, 2024, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
4. PEG Africa
PEGA Africa is a solar products and solutions developer for improving access to power in rural regions of Africa. The company aims to reduce dependency on harmful fuels for home lighting such as kerosene, through its pay-as-you-go model of accessing solar home systems on credit to households in West Africa. They are currently operating in Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire and has tied up with M-Kopa solar to deliver its systems.
Key facts about PEG Africa
- Founded Year: 2013
- Location: Accra (Ghana)
- Stage: Acquired
- Total Funding till date: $26M
- Employee Count: 271 as on Jul 01, 2024
- Investors: British International Investment, DEG and 17 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Conventional Debt, Oct 16, 2019, $*****
- Highlight: Acquired
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5. Candi Solar
Provider of end-to-end solar and battery solutions for businesses. The company offers customized finance and performance solutions. It handles the complete installation process, ensuring a seamless and efficient setup. The company manages the system, guaranteeing optimal performance, energy optimisation, and reliability.
Key facts about Candi Solar
- Founded Year: 2017
- Location: Zurich (Switzerland)
- Stage: Series C
- Total Funding till date: $66M
- Employee Count: 58 as on Jul 01, 2024
- Investors: IFC, responsAbility and 10 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Conventional Debt, Nov 28, 2025, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
E3 Capital's Year-on-Year Investment Trends
E3 Capital has invested in 29 companies over the last 10 years, with an average of 3 new investments annually in the last 10 years. In 2025, it made 5 investments, while as of Jan 2026, it has made 1 investment in this year. Its most recent first time investment was in GoCab and most recent follow-on round was in Nuru.Year | No. of Investments | ||
|---|---|---|---|
1st Round | Follow-on | Total | |
2026 (YTD) | 1 | 0 | 1 |
2025 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
2024 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
2023 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
2022 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
2021 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
2020 | 3 | 2 | 5 |
2019 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
2018 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
2017 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
E3 Capital's Investments by Stage
E3 Capital has made 14 investments in Seed stage with an average round size of $4.67M, 9 investments in Series A stage with an average round size of $5.22M, 1 investment in Series B stage with an average round size of $1.5M and 1 investment in Series D stage with an average round size of $15M.Stage of entry | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
Seed | 14 |
Series A | 9 |
Series B | 1 |
Series D | 1 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
E3 Capital's Investments by Sector
E3 Capital has a diverse portfolio, with companies operating in the Energy, Environment, Energy Tech, Environment Tech and Sustainability Tech. Notably, it has invested in 15 Enterprise (B2B) companies, 14 Tech companies, 9 Consumer (B2C) companies and at least 6 companies focusing on Software.Sector | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
Energy | 9 |
Environment | 9 |
Energy Tech | 6 |
Environment Tech | 6 |
Sustainability Tech | 6 |
Others | 25 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
E3 Capital's Investments by Geography
E3 Capital has made most investments in Kenya (6), followed by Ghana where it has made 3 investments.Country | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
Kenya | 6 |
Ghana | 3 |
South Africa | 3 |
United Kingdom | 3 |
United States | 2 |
Others | 8 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
E3 Capital's recent investments
E3 Capital has made 1 investments in 2026 so far - GoCab.Here are the most recent investments by E3 Capital:
Filter this listDate | Company | Location | Round Details | Round Amount | Co-Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jan 26, 2026 | Ivory Coast | Seed | 6318 | [+2] | |
Nov 18, 2025 | South Africa | Series A | 9671 | [+3] | |
Jun 24, 2025 | Nigeria | Seed | 3277 | [+1] | |
Jun 17, 2025 | South Africa | Seed | 2777 | [+1] | |
Apr 30, 2025 | Ghana | Seed | 6602 | [+5] |
Acquired companies in E3 Capital's Portfolio
2 companies from E3 Capital's portfolio have been acquired. The most recent acquisition were PayGo Energy in Apr 2023 by Sun King.Here are E3 Capital's portfolio companies that got acquired most recently:
Company | Acquisition Date | First Invested on | First Round of Investment | Round Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Apr 28, 2023 | Apr 24, 2017 | Seed | 9287 | |
Sep 06, 2022 | Jun 21, 2016 | Series A | 7172 |
Team profile of E3 Capital
E3 Capital has a team of 25 members including 4 Partners and 2 Principals located in Kenya and United Kingdom. E3 Capital's team does not sit on the board of any company as of now.Here is a list of top team members in E3 Capital:
Name | Designation | Location | Board Memberships | Contact Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Partner | Kenya | - | ||
Partner | Kenya | - | - | |
Partner | Kenya | - | - | |
Partner | Kenya | - | - | |
Principal | London | - | ||
Principal | London | - | - |
Co-investors of E3 Capital
Over the past 10 years, 153 investors have co-invested in E3 Capital's portfolio companies. This includes funds and angels.
- Invested before E3 Capital: DFJ, Omidyar Network and 47 others have invested in rounds before E3 Capital. There is 1 company where DFJ has invested before E3 Capital and 1 company where Omidyar Network has invested before E3 Capital.
- Top Co-investors of E3 Capital: 55 investors entered a company along with E3 Capital. These include investors like FMO (3 companies).
- Invested after E3 Capital: A total of 49 investors have invested in E3 Capital's portfolio after their investments. Top Investors include Proparco (5 companies), InfraCo Africa (3 companies) and FMO (2 companies).
Recent News related to E3 Capital
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GoCab Secures $45M In Equity And Debt FinancingStartup Rise EU•Feb 05, 2026•Cur8 Capital, E3 Capital, Janngo, GoCab
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Mobility Fintech GoCab Secures $45M Funding for Expansion of Drive-To-Own ModelCrowdfund Insider•Jan 26, 2026•E3 Capital, Janngo, GoCab, Cur8 Capital and 3 others
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Backed by $15M to Date, SA’s Plentify Targets Global Market With Its Residential Energy Platformtechbuild.africa•Nov 19, 2025•Fireball Capital, E3 Capital, Endeavor, Plentify and 2 others
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Plentify closes oversubscribed Series-A funding roundInnovation-village•Nov 18, 2025•Fireball Capital, E3 Capital, Plentify, Secha Capital and 1 other
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Open Access Energy Secures $1.8M Seed Funding to Expand AI PlatformTechgist Africa•Jul 08, 2025•Open Access Energy, Equator, E3 Capital
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Nigerian construction tech startup Cutstruct raises $1.5M seed roundInnovation-village•Jun 24, 2025•Cutstruct, CRE Venture Capital, E3 Capital, Techstars and 1 other
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Open Access Energy secures $1.8-million seed funding for SA expansionTechCentral•Jun 17, 2025•Open Access Energy, E3 Capital, Equator, Factor[e] Ventures
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Insight Terra Raises $5.7M to Scale Its AI-Driven Greenhouse Gas PlaformTechMoran•Jan 24, 2025•Insight Terra, E3 Capital, Fireball Capital, Atlantic Bridge and 3 others
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Plentify Secures 50% Oversubscribed Funding To Expand In SA And InternationallyTechFinancials•Jul 22, 2024•Plentify, Third Sphere, Fireball Capital, E3 Capital
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Nuru Secures Us$50m From Miga To Develop Hybrid Solar Energy In DrcAfrica CEO Voices•Jun 27, 2024•Nuru, Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency, IFC, Proparco and 4 others
