There are more than 800,000 stokvels in SA. Between them, they have about 11-million members, who together invest more than R50bn a year. Stokvels form a crucial part of the country’s economy, enabling collective saving and purchasing power.
Stokvels are also a source of community — and that, says artist Nono Motlhoki, is the major value proposition of Canvas Capital, the company she cofounded with fintech specialist Tokelo Matlou to apply the stokvel model to art collection. It’s one of those ideas that makes so much sense you wonder why no-one has thought of it before