A susu is an old, simple way to save together. Families and neighbors have run them for generations. A set group pays the same amount into one pot on a set schedule, and each round one member takes the whole pot. When every member has had a turn, the circle is done.
The Six Phases
Each phase is its own closed circle of ten members, with its own pot size. Join the phase that fits your budget. You can join more than one, and you don't have to finish one phase to join another.
- Phase 1: $250 pot. Each member pays $25 every two weeks and takes the $250 pot once.
- Phase 2: $500 pot. Each member pays $50 every two weeks and takes the $500 pot once.
- Phase 3: $1,500 pot. Each member pays $150 every two weeks and takes the $1,500 pot once.
- Phase 4: $3,500 pot. Each member pays $350 every two weeks and takes the $3,500 pot once.
- Phase 5: $5,000 pot. Each member pays $500 every two weeks and takes the $5,000 pot once.
- Phase 6: $10,000 pot. Each member pays $1,000 every two weeks and takes the $10,000 pot once.
How Every Phase Works
The group, the amount and the order are all fixed before the first payment. Nothing changes once a phase starts.
- Ten seats, filled before day one. Once the tenth seat is taken, that phase is closed. Nobody joins partway through.
- Everyone in the phase pays the same amount every two weeks. That's one-tenth of the pot, every round, for all ten rounds.
- One member takes the full pot each round. The payout order is set and shared with everyone before the first payment.
- Ten rounds, then it ends. Each member pays in one full pot and gets back one full pot over twenty weeks.
The only thing that differs between seats is timing. An early seat works like a no-interest loan from the group, and a late seat works like a savings plan. Pick the seat that fits when you need the money.
What This Is Not
There's no recruiting and there are no fees. Moving to a higher phase is a choice to save a bigger amount, not a level you earn. Nobody gets back more than they put in, and bringing in new people never moves anyone up or pays anyone extra. This isn't an investment and earns no interest. If someone offers you a version where newcomers pay the people ahead of them, that's a different thing, and it isn't this.
Before You Take a Seat
A susu runs on trust, so only join a phase if you can make all ten payments.
- Can you cover your phase's payment every two weeks for twenty weeks? If you miss a payment, the member due that round comes up short.
- Do you know the organizer and the other members? These circles work best among people who already trust each other.
- Are you staying in after your payout? Members who take an early seat still owe every payment that's left.