If you've never heard of them, you might be tempted to label stokvels as a kind of pyramid scheme - and there have been plenty of dodgy scams pretending to be stokvels, so it pays to be on your toes. But pyramid schemes are very different from genuine stokvels, with the latter being specifically built on collective trust and honesty, driven by camaraderie and community, and powered by ubuntu.
HOW IT WORKS
A stokvel is, in essence, a not-for-profit financial institution (like a co-operative) that's entirely owned by its members. In other words, it's like a bank that's entirely owned by the people who make use of it. Stokvels enable ordinary people to save collectively and, in so doing, to save up more than they might be able to save on their own.
These savings clubs represent a massive portion of the economy. According to the National Stokvel Association of South Africa, we have over 800 000 stokvel groups in this country, representing some 11.6 million individuals whose collective annual savings amounts to almost R50 billion.
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