Pearly whites? Researchers used toothpaste to make edible transistors, opening up the possibility of microchips you can safely swallow to help track and manage your body’s health from the inside.

In this Open Letter:

• Uniquely SA: Helping 19 million save better, more securely.

• Uber safaris, Eskom’s magic coal dust & solar-powered home bots.

• See you tonight: Our Stellenbosch event is tonight — book your spot.

• How often you eat out: And the latest poll results are in.

• Startup fuel: Share this 10 times and get Pro membership.

Together with:

TRENDING NOW

Helping SA Manage R50bn in Savings

SA has the most mature and robust banking industry in Africa (and right up there with the best in the world, mind you), but despite that, late last year, we learned that a staggering 19 million South Africans remain underbanked. 

And while most still get paid in cash and use that cash to spend, many remain in the cash world, so it made sense that saving also happened in the world of cash: Hence the Stokvel.

Ah, the Stokvel 

For those who don’t know: A Stokvel is a member-only group savings system where 12 or more people contribute a set amount of money to a shared fund regularly (weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly) with different members receiving the entire collected amount in a lump sum on a rotational basis.

Let’s say you’re 12 people, each contributing R1’000 per month. In a classic rotational stokvel, each member chooses a month out of the year, and for that one month, you get R12’000 to use for yourself.

It’s a uniquely South African savings mechanism.

Now, stokvels are guided by a constitution that outlines all the rules: contributions, payouts, and member roles. And by law groups must be registered with the National Stokvel Association of South Africa (NASASA), the only association approved by the Registrar of Banks in terms of the Banks Act 1990 (Act No. 94 of 1990).

And, as one can imagine, you can use this mechanism in various ways. That’s why there are different types of Stokvels: from grocery stokvels to investment clubs.

The Stokvel game is no small thing…

According to NASASA, there are more than 800k Stokvel groups in South Africa with more than 11 million individuals. 

And the industry manages around R50 billion each year, essentially creating a massive network of “human banks” in the local economy.

Now, up until very recently, we would not have thought that a digital stokvel is viable. It faces adoption challenges and “money-in” friction. Basically, if someone has to take cash to a bank to join a stokvel, it's costing them way too much in terms of time and taxi fare. It’s a non-starter.

But things have started changing fast in the financial infrastructure for townships space.

Earlier in the year, we covered how Kazang has a presence in more than 85’000 spaza shops across SA and how their tech is enabling merchants to take cash deposits, allow withdrawals from cards (and make payments with cards), sell bus tickets and a host of other interesting offerings.

With this footprint, it could finally make sense to do the digital stokvel and it looks like it’s happening…

The local player bringing the Stokvel into the future

StokFella is a digital stokvel app designed to make running a stokvel more efficient and secure by offering tools for record-keeping, financial tracking, and communication – all in a user-friendly, secure platform.

They’ve got a pretty flexible subscription-based pricing, starting with a free plan for up to 15 members, which covers the basics of running a stokvel. 

But if you wanna go pro for R500 per month, stokvels get meeting resources, detailed reports, executive coaching discounts, and higher interest rates on savings. They are also integrating innovative solutions to offer members such as a link into Troygold to allow stokvels to effortlessly invest in gold via API.

With over 42’000 members and more than R220 million transacted, StokFella is bringing an innovative solution that modernises old-school, traditional savings and investment schemes like stokvels. We’re watching this space…

IN SHORT

Sound smart at the watercooler

🤖 Power Bot. Local home energy management company Plentify has joined forces with one of SA’s largest solar and electrical distributors Herholdts to launch SolarBot. This intelligent controller analyses weather patterns, load-shedding schedules and customer demand to make smarter decisions on when to charge and discharge the battery.

🦁 All Hail Safari. Uber has just launched Uber Safari in South Africa. And just like the name suggests, users will be able to book a full-day “Wildlife Adventure” from Cape Town to the Aquila Private Game Reserve which includes a 3-hour game drive to see Africa’s Big 5. The round trip will set you back around R3’400 for 4 peeps and runs on Fridays and Saturdays.

🏠 Home affairs at Home. South African home affairs is notorious for long queues, confusing processes and frustrations. However, given that their budget has been cut by as much as 40%, perhaps that’s part of the reason. The new Home Affairs minister is planning to build Home Affairs @ home, taking everything online and making it digital. If it works, no more queues…hooraay!

🛣️ Recycled Roads. Eskom’s Research, Testing, and Development (RT&D) initiative is trialling the use of recycled coal ash instead of traditional cement for road construction. It’s starting its trial with a new access road at its Kusile Power Station and is expecting to use around 2’904 tonnes of coal ash per km of road.

🏦 Take it to the Bank. Africa's largest financial institution by market capitalisation, FirstRand, is set to acquire all of HSBC Bank plc’s South African operations including clients, banking assets, liabilities, and staff with the deal set to close at the end of 2025.

😎 The Stack. Founders need tools and suppliers they can trust. Check out our Founder’s Stack with super-easy local and international payment processing with WigWag, expert offshoring, company structure and legal advice from Dommisse Attorneys and 11 more vital startup tools & services.

CHECK THIS OUT

Do banks even know what startups are?

One recent Open Letter user poll revealed that South Africans are tired of their banks.

• High fees

• Horrible service, and

• A general sense that their bank just doesn’t get their needs.

But there is hope. Introducing Lula’s ZERO fee bank accounts.

That’s right, zero monthly fees to set up and use a Lula business bank account.

What’s more, when you have a Lula bank account, you can:

• Stay on top of finances with their free, powerful cashflow manager called Lulaflow

• Earn 1.5% annual interest on positive balances

• Get dedicated support from real humans in real time

Finally, with a Lula business bank account, it’s never been easier to get access to up to R5 million in business finance.

Trusted by SMEs for more than a decade – get a bank that understands small business.

Get a Lula bank account today.

HAPPENING SOON

Upcoming Events

1 October 2024 — Stellenbosch: How to Build an AI Startup with Dries Cronje and Retief Gerber — tickets here.

4 October 2024 — Online Masterclass: All about offshoring with Andea du Toit from Dommisse Attorneys — The Open Collab community exclusive.

11 October 2024 — Linkedin Live: We chat with author and serial entrepreneur Alan Knott-Craig on his new book, Life Lessons.

25 October 2024 — Online Masterclass: SA’s very own “product legend” Roger Norton is here for the first in a three-part product building series — The Open Collab community exclusive.

1 November 2024 — Online Masterclass: Keep your B2B sales pipe filled Masterclass session with sales expert, Sebastian Chapman — The Open Collab community exclusive.

View all our upcoming events here.

BUILDING TOGETHER

Happening over at The Open Collab

In the last 48 hours alone, in our online community, we…

• Learned that in 3-or-so weeks, TJ Strydom is releasing a new book on how the Capitec founders turned their tiny little startup into a Big 5 contender.

• Shared what business books everyone is reading — got 7-odd awesome recommendations.

• Discovered an awesome new spreadsheet and data presentation tool.

• Learnt where to get Padel gear for a good price.

• Discussed how similar the CIA’s description of activist groups is to meetings in academia.

• Welcomed a host of new members! (It’s starting to buzz in here).

Coming Up Next Week

• Wednesday 10-11: Office Hours, where we all log in and work together, + the whole Open Letter team is at members’ disposal.

• New: Free monthly startup strategy calls for all Open Collab members.

• Support: All day, every day: unlimited introductions, recruitment, service provider referrals and business-building insights.

FOR THE MEMES

Always keeping it spicy

Got some startup memes? Send them our way or tag us on socials.

WHAT YOU SAID

A Bite to Eat

We asked how often you eat out, and once a week’s the way…

🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🍜 Daily – lunches at the office (13%)

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 🍔 Once a week (38%)

🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🍕 Monthly as a payday treat (17%)

🟨🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🥞 Special occasions only like birthdays or anniversaries (23%)

🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 👨‍🍳 I don't eat out – I make better food at home for a fraction of the price (9%)

Your 2 cents…

Nice one for cooking, Spatzendreck. Guess it also depends where you live — in Cape Town, we have some good-looking vegan options (our favourites are always vegan desserts, ‘cos everyone can enjoy them together). 🤗

Oh wow, Chris. Yes, we’ve been noticing lately a lot more reports on extortion networks in SA than we seem to have had before — hope it doesn’t become an issue in the future. 😥

We hope initiatives like HeadsUp help ensure you always get value, Princess! 🌯

Eish, ja, Marius. We’re hoping for cost savings and better Rand making things a little more affordable again. 💸