esusu

Ten colleagues agree to put ₦20,000 each into a pot every month. In month one, Chidi collects ₦200,000. In month two, Amaka collects ₦200,000. The cycle runs for ten months until everyone has had a turn, then it starts again or it ends.

That is esusu. You may know it as ajo, adashe or etoto, depending on where you grew up.

The appeal is obvious. You get a lump sum you would struggle to save alone, and the discipline comes from people who will notice if you miss. Nobody charges you interest. For rent or school fees, collecting ₦200,000 in one go beats watching ₦20,000 disappear into small expenses every month.

Two things are worth understanding before you join one.

First, you earn nothing. Put ₦20,000 in for ten months and you take out ₦200,000. If inflation ran at 20 percent over that year, the money you collect buys less than the money you put in. Esusu is a savings discipline, not an investment.

Second, your position in the queue matters more than people admit. Collecting in month one is close to an interest free loan in your favour. Collecting in month ten means you lent the group your money for most of a year and earned nothing on it.

And it rests entirely on trust. There is no regulator, no deposit insurance and no contract you can easily enforce. When an esusu collapses, it is usually because somebody stopped paying after collecting, or because the person holding the money disappeared.