From groceries to equity funds
Merriam Mashiloane, 46, has more than 30 women in her grocery stokvel. Everybody puts in R250 when they meet at a venue in Olievenhoutbosch, south of Pretoria, each month. Three women are entrusted with the cash, which they deposit in an account at Standard Bank. Mashiloane said many of the members were foreigners who had no IDs and therefore battled to get a bank account. The stokvel gave them access to a semi-formal financial service, which helped them to save. In December, each member is given her R3 000 either in cash or the value in groceries, which are packed and delivered to the stokvel base by Metro Cash & Carry. Mashiloane said she used to not know anything about interest, or that she could grow her money in a bank.
Treasure Mkokeli, 40, is part of a stokvel with 10 family members who live in Mpumalanga. Each member contributes R700 a month, and those who work remotely always send it home. Money is available to borrow for short periods at an interest rate of 20% a month. Whatever is not being borrowed is kept in a bank. The stokvel’s money is carefully managed by three family members, who have the task of making sure all repayments are in by pay day. In November, the members get R8 400 plus any interest that might have accrued. Mkokeli said she had been using the annual payouts to finish building her house.
Grace Matthews, 36, is a senior business development manager at a Bryanston-based IT company. She said she had been in stokvels since she was in her early 20s. She said stokvels had been an integral part of her youth — her mother and grandmother were both involved in them. The first ones Matthews joined were aimed solely at saving, either for the year or for incidental expenses that might arise. But she has also been involved in stokvels that saved for holidays and luxurious homeware items — Egyptian cotton linen was high on the list of musthave items. In November she and six friends started an investment stokvel that puts money into an aggressive equity fund. Each member contributes R2 000 a month. The “constitution” states that they will make deposits for a year and then leave their money for five years. However, one member is getting married and another is emigrating to the US and both want to take out what they put in. Their shares will be withdrawn and the stokvel will probably continue without them.
— Tina Weavind