JSE-listed Standard Bank invests $40mn in New GX Capital's clean-tech platform Airnergize

Standard Bank Group (JSE:SBK) has agreed to make a ZAR750mn ($40mn) strategic equity investment in Airnergize Capital, the clean-technology platform of New GX Capital, to support the expansion of commercial and industrial renewable power solutions, TechCentral reports.

The investment will bolster Sustainable Power Solutions (SPS), a utility business under Airnergize that develops, owns and operates solar and battery storage systems for commercial and industrial (C&I) users. SPS currently operates in South Africa and selected sub-Saharan and Indian Ocean markets.

The capital will be used to scale project deployment and expand SPS’s portfolio of behind-the-meter and distributed energy assets, responding to increasing demand for reliable, cost-stable power in regions affected by grid instability and diesel reliance.

The transaction forms part of Standard Bank’s sustainable finance goals, which include mobilising ZAR450bn by 2028 and reaching net-zero financed emissions by 2050. The bank said the investment aligns with its strategy to support energy transition infrastructure across priority markets.

The clean-tech fund structure was launched earlier in 2025 in partnership with RMB Ventures, the private equity investment arm of FirstRand (JSE:FSR). It initially raised ZAR2.4bn ($128mn) and has since secured an additional ZAR500mn ($27mn) from Nedbank Group (JSE:NED), bringing total commitments to more than ZAR3.6bn (around $192mn).

Khudusela Pitje, founder and group CEO of New GX Capital, said the latest capital commitments would support expansion into new C&I power markets, particularly where distributed clean power can reduce fuel consumption and mitigate grid reliability challenges, according to TechCentral.

Standard Bank Corporate & Investment Banking executives said the partnership demonstrates the bank’s approach of working with local project operators and asset developers to scale clean-energy penetration in regional markets.

Standard Bank Group is Africa’s largest banking group by assets, providing retail, business, corporate and investment banking, wealth management and insurance services across 20 African markets, with additional operations in global financial centres (including London, Beijing and Dubai).