What are savings circles called around the world?

What every savings circle has in common

Economist Stefan Klonner describes the basic version. A group meets regularly, each member pays in a fixed amount, and each time one member receives the pot. Once you’ve had the pot you can’t have it again, and the circle ends when everyone has had it exactly once. Nobody pays interest in the simplest version, because everyone gets back what they paid in.

Klonner lists dozens of countries where these circles have been documented, from Barbados and Ghana to India and Vietnam. They turn up in the UK and the US too, among immigrants from Pakistan and Korea, for example. Below are the names you’re most likely to hear, and our guide to each where we have one.

Pardner and sou-sou in the Caribbean

Caribbean families in Britain call it a pardner or pardna. The Bank of England Museum says the Windrush Generation turned to it when many were refused loans and bank accounts. In Trinidad and Tobago it’s a sou-sou, which Global Voices describes as running until everyone has received a hand. Read our guide to the susu and sou sou.

Ajo, esusu, adashe and susu in West Africa

In Nigeria, Yoruba speakers say ajo or esusu. PiggyVest translates ajo as group savings. Hausa speakers say adashe or adashi, and Hyphen reports that the collector is known as the uwar adashi. In Ghana, susu can mean a group like this, or a single person saving with a susu collector who visits often, according to Oxford Policy Management.

Ayuuto, hagbad and equb in East Africa

Somali families call it ayuuto or hagbad. Al Jazeera reports that ayuuto means help. Ethiopian families have the equb. UCR Magazine says it began with rural women and that wherever Ethiopians live, they are likely to practise it. In Los Angeles’ Little Ethiopia, it reports, members pay in about $200 to $300 a week and the pool lends to members for rent, medical bills or a new business.

Stokvel in South Africa

South Africans have the stokvel. The National Stokvel Association of South Africa says it works with more than 125,000 groups and 2.5 million people. Some stokvels rotate a pot, and others save together towards groceries or funerals.

Kameti, committee and chit fund in South Asia

Pakistani and other South Asian families call it a kameti or committee. The Muslim Women’s Council found that 70% of the 50 women in its Bradford focus group had taken part in one. In India, a chit fund works the same way, but Klonner notes that many are run by registered companies under Chit Funds Acts.

Tanda and cundina in Mexico

Mexican families say tanda or cundina, depending on the region, according to NPR. Its example has ten women paying $100 every two weeks, with one of them taking $2,000 each month.

Paluwagan in the Philippines

Filipinos call it a paluwagan. Moneymax says a group needs at least three people, usually friends, neighbours or co-workers, and pays weekly, twice a month or monthly. It cites a 2017 central bank survey that found 4% of adult Filipinos save this way.

Drawing lots or bidding

Most of the circles above set the order by agreement or by drawing names. Klonner describes a second kind, where members bid in an auction for an early pot. He also describes a group of Korean immigrants in Washington DC that drew lots but used printed tables, so people with earlier turns paid in more.

Whichever name your group uses, our free rota and pot calculator works out the pot, draws a fair order and lists the date of every turn.

Where CircleSave fits

CircleSave keeps the record for a savings circle under any name. Everyone can see who has paid and whose turn is next, and members get reminders on WhatsApp. We never hold the money, because members pay whoever’s turn it is directly. We can’t promise everyone will pay. A circle can have up to 10 people.