Aerem Raises $15 Million in Funding Led by SMBC Asia Rising Fund

Indian distributed solar platform Aerem Solutions has raised $15 million in a pre-Series B funding round led by SMBC Asia Rising Fund, the venture capital arm of Japan’s Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, the company said on Tuesday.

Existing investors British International Investment, The University of Tokyo Edge Capital Partners, Blume Ventures, Avaana Capital, Riverwalk Holdings, and SE Ventures, the venture arm of Schneider Electric, also participated in the round.

Founded in 2021 and headquartered in Mumbai, Aerem operates a full-stack platform for distributed solar, combining project financing, equipment procurement, system design and asset monitoring. The company primarily serves micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), homeowners and solar installers.

To Boost Capabilities 

Aerem said it would use the fresh capital to strengthen its end-to-end capabilities, expand its installer and EPC partner network, and scale operations across India, while improving access to financing for distributed solar projects.

Despite favourable economics and policy support, distributed solar accounts for only about 20% of India’s installed solar capacity, compared with more than 50% in markets such as the United States and parts of Europe, according to industry data cited by the company.

“By integrating financing, procurement, design and monitoring, we are addressing key structural barriers that have slowed adoption,” said Anand Jain, founder and chief executive of Aerem.

Increasing RE Adoption 

Rajeev Kannan, head of India division at SMBC, said Aerem’s integrated approach could help accelerate the adoption of clean energy in India by reducing execution and financing risks.

Aerem said it has enabled more than 1,200 MW of solar capacity to date and financed over 2,000 projects nationwide through a network of more than 3,200 installation partners across 150 cities.