Nobody can run off with the money.

Where the money is held right now

The Stockvel App is in its pilot. Every payment in the app is a DEMO payment and no real money moves. Every money screen is marked DEMO. You can try everything — creating a Stockvel, adding money, votes and payouts — without risking a cent.

When the app starts handling real money, this page will explain exactly where it is held, in plain words, before anyone is asked to pay. At launch, each Stockvel's money will sit in the group's own bank stockvel account, where withdrawals need several signatories. Later, a licensed partner may hold the money in a trust or escrow account, and only release it when the Stockvel's rules say so.

No one person holds the money

In a traditional stockvel, a treasurer keeps everyone's cash. In The Stockvel App, no member — not even the admin who created the Stockvel — can take money out on their own.

Everyone must agree to unlock it

Money stays locked until the payout date. It can only come out early if every member votes yes within 72 hours. One "no", or one person who doesn't vote, keeps it locked. That lock is what makes you a saver.

• Want to leave early with your money? Every other member must agree.
• Want to stop paying? You can, any time, without a vote. Your money stays saved and is paid back to you on payout day.
• Removing a member or changing a rule needs two-thirds of members to agree.

Every rand is on record

Every payment, top-up, vote and payout is written into a record that cannot be changed or deleted. Mistakes are corrected with a new entry, in the open. Every member can see the full history of their Stockvel.

Fair Share: you get back what you put in

If someone stops paying, they get back only what they paid. Nobody else loses a cent because of someone else's missed payment.

Your account is locked to you

• You sign in with a code sent by SMS to your phone, and a 5-digit PIN only you know.
• Your PIN is needed for every payment, every vote and every payout. After 5 wrong tries, your account locks for 30 minutes.
• Your PIN is stored scrambled (hashed). Not even our staff can see it.
• Everything travels over an encrypted connection (HTTPS).

Your chat is private

Each Stockvel's chat is end-to-end encrypted. Messages are locked on your phone before they are sent, and only your Stockvel's members can unlock them. Our servers only ever see scrambled text.

Verification

Before you join a public Stockvel with people you don't know, we check your identity with your South African ID number. One ID number can only have one account.

Never pay anyone directly. All Stockvel money goes through the app.