What it is
Trine is a Swedish crowdfunding platform that connects individual investors with solar energy projects in emerging markets, primarily in East Africa and South Asia. Investors can fund specific projects starting from as little as 25 EUR, earning returns of 4-8% annually while directly financing off-grid solar installations. Each project page shows the expected impact in terms of households reached and CO2 avoided.
Why we picked this
Most impact investing requires institutional-scale capital. Trine makes it accessible to anyone with 25 EUR. The projects are tangible: you can see which solar company you funded, track repayment, and calculate the tonnes of CO2 your investment displaced. It is one of the few platforms where retail investors get genuine, measurable climate impact with financial returns.
Key takeaways
- Trine has facilitated over 100 million EUR in solar investments across 60+ projects, displacing an estimated 1.5 million tonnes of CO2.
- Default rates have historically stayed below 5%, though emerging market currency risk and project-level risk mean this is not a guaranteed return.
- The platform targets solar companies that sell pay-as-you-go systems, meaning the funded hardware generates revenue from day one.