Table 1 Case study assessment matrix
| Â | The sun exchange | Bankymoon | Onewattsolar |
|---|---|---|---|
Location | South Africa | South Africa | Nigeria |
Innovation | Peer-to-peer platform for financing solar energy system installation and leasing platform | Blockchain enabled smart meters that facilitates payments for utilities using cryptocurrencies | Peer-to-peer platform for financing solar energy system installation and leasing platform |
Business model | Two-sided marketplace that brings together financiers and consumers of renewable energy. Crowd fund installation of solar energy and lease generated energy to consumers, investors earn returns on investments through income generated from usage fee paid by consumers | Payment facilitation | Two-sided marketplace that brings together financiers and consumers of renewable energy. Crowd fund installation of solar energy and lease generated energy to consumers, investors earn returns on investments through income generated from usage fee paid by consumers |
Sustainable energy transition compliance | Yes—the solutions provided by The Sun Exchange offers access to electricity to underserved communities in South Africa using renewable energy. It also leverages a flexible and convenient payment model that ensures that cost is not a barrier to access for users at the bottom of the society’s socioeconomic pyramid | No—they provide access to energy traditional sources; their solution is more focused on providing access to energy through additional payment source which in this case is made possible by enabling the use of cryptocurrencies. In comparison with Alliander and Electron, the energy consumed by the end-users is not sourced from sustainable sources | Yes—like what The Sun Exchange offers, their solution offers access to electricity to underserved communities in Nigeria using renewable energy. It leverages a flexible and convenient payment model that ensures that cost is not a barrier to access for users at the bottom of the society’s socioeconomic pyramid |
Socioeconomic inclusiveness (cost of acquisition and use as a barrier) | Yes—cost is not a barrier to access and usage for the targeted user base | Yes—cost is not a barrier to access and usage for the targeted user base | Yes—cost is not a barrier to access and usage for the targeted user base |