Three years ago, we decided to position Finlite as a Fintech Academy for the Township Economy. I personally facilitated every session across three townships so I could experience first-hand the realities young people face: knowledge gaps, access to resources like smartphones and laptops, and reliable, free Wi-Fi. The results were both encouraging and alarming. Encouraging, because sessions were oversubscribed, confirming that young people are hungry for opportunities. They don’t want handouts, they want a hand…

I’ve been thinking about something lately… For the longest time, the “bottom of the pyramid” was treated like a problem to solve. Low income. Low margins. High risk.That narrative stuck for years. Even I wanted nothing to do with Townships when I got exposed to corporate, mainstream. I was echoing a lot of my colleagues in Investment Banking, saying ‘I only follow the money”. But some players just didn’t buy into it.They looked at the…

New AI and Financial Education draft policies are trying to move people from access to real capability. Today, around 90% of adults have bank accounts, yet financial literacy remains at roughly 50–55%. At the same time, the pressure is building: – Household debt-to-income sits above 60%– Gambling revenue has exceeded R75 billion annually– Over R57 billion has already been withdrawn through the Two-Pot retirement system, with repeat withdrawals becoming common This isn’t just a personal…

A Massive Economy That Doesn’t Fully Serve Its Creators The township economy is estimated to be close to R1 trillion in value. It is vibrant, fast-moving, and deeply embedded in everyday life. Yet, much of its true scale only became visible when corporates began analysing transaction data — card payments, mobile transactions, and retail flows. The same pattern appears in stokvels. For decades, they were seen as small, informal savings groups. Today, we know they…

  What we see on the surface of the township economy is only a fraction of what is really happening. Walk through any township and you’ll notice the visible signs of economic life — spaza shops on street corners, hair salons operating from backrooms, food vendors serving daily customers, and small service providers hustling to meet demand. But this visible layer is just the tip of the iceberg. Beneath it exists a vast, dynamic, and…