How it works

Getting your group started

We do the setting up with you, so the first day is about your members, not settings.

1. Register your group. Fill in the short form with your group's name, kind, size and a contact person. We call within two working days.
2. We set it up with you. We create your group with your contribution types, loan rules, fines and number of signatories, from your constitution.
3. Connect your money. Link your group's own M-PESA Paybill or Buy Goods till, and your bank account if you use one. Funds always stay in your accounts.
4. Invite your members. Add members one at a time or import them from a spreadsheet. Each receives a link to set a password.
5. Bring your balances. Enter each member's savings and shares as they stand today, so statements start from the right figures.
6. Start collecting. From the next contribution, payments record themselves and members get receipts.

What a member does

1. Pay. Pay to the group's Paybill or till with their member number as the account, or tap Pay in the app and approve the M-PESA prompt.
2. Get a receipt. Receive a receipt by SMS or email with the new balance.
3. Check their statement. Open their statement any time: contributions, loans, fines, dividends and payouts.
4. Borrow. See how much they can borrow, apply, and ask fellow members to guarantee the loan.
5. Take part. Send apologies for meetings, vote in polls and claim welfare from their phone.

What officials do

1. Watch the money come in. See contributions as they arrive, who is behind, and any payment that needs matching.
2. Approve together. Review loan applications, withdrawals and payouts, and approve with a code from an authenticator app.
3. Pay out. Send approved payouts by M-PESA from the group's shortcode, or record payments made by bank or cash.
4. Run meetings. Take attendance, record minutes and decisions, charge or waive fines.
5. Report. Print member statements and the financial statements for the AGM, or download them for the auditor.

Bringing your records across

You don't need to retype years of history. Start from today's balances and keep your old book for reference.

1. Members: import a spreadsheet with names and phone numbers, or add them one by one.
2. Opening balances: enter each member's savings and shares as at your start date, in the import spreadsheet or one by one. Loans still running in your old book are best finished there; we'll advise during set-up.
3. Recent payments: import M-PESA or bank statements for the months since your last balance, and match anything that didn't carry a member number.
4. Check together: each member sees their opening balance on their statement and can raise anything that looks wrong.

We help with all of this during set-up. Talk to us if your records are in a format you're unsure of.