Frequently Asked Questions

A Njangi is a community-based savings system where members contribute funds together in a rotation for the equal benefit of every member. It's also known as ROSCA (Rotating Savings and Credit Association), Tontine, Sou Sou, or by many other cultural names around the world. Njangi On-Chain runs that same tradition with the pot held in escrow rather than by a treasurer, so nobody has to hold everyone else's money.

Getting started is simple: 1) Click 'Login' and authenticate with your Google, Facebook, or other social account using zkLogin, 2) Create a new savings circle or join an existing one, 3) Agree the contribution amount and rotation order with your group, 4) Post your security deposit and start contributing. There is no seed phrase to write down and no token to buy first.

Running a circle is free. You pay only the small Sui network transaction fee (usually a few cents) when contributing or receiving a payout, and that goes to the network, not to us. We never take a cut of contributions or payouts. A Premium subscription unlocks coordination features — larger circles, WhatsApp notifications, smart goals, and analytics — and is paid by the circle admin; see the pricing page for what is included. Your circle's money is never behind a paywall.

Two: USDC and SUI. USDC is a digital dollar, so a circle spread across countries can agree an amount that holds its value. Do not send any other asset, and do not send over any network other than Sui — funds sent another way cannot be recovered.

The circle is the same; what changes is who holds the money and who keeps the record. 1) Nobody holds the pot — each cycle's contributions sit in escrow that only the scheduled recipient can open, 2) the rotation runs to the order your circle agreed rather than to memory, 3) every contribution and payout is on a shared record any member can check, 4) members can vote to stop a circle and get their money back, and 5) a circle can span countries, so family abroad can take part.

Each cycle's contributions are held by a contract — a set of rules fixed before anyone pays in, which nobody can quietly change afterwards, including us. It holds the contributions in escrow, release the pot to the member whose turn it is under the rotation order your circle agreed, record every contribution and payout on chain, and apply the same rules to everyone. The rotation order is set by the circle admin before the circle starts, not drawn at random.

The circle admin sets the rotation order, the same way a njangi treasurer traditionally would — by arranging members into positions the group has agreed on. It is not random. What is different from a paper list is that the order is stored on-chain and visible to every member, and any change to it is recorded as an on-chain event, so nobody can quietly move themselves up the queue. Once the order is set, each cycle pays the member in the next position until everyone has had their turn.

The circle's rules cover missed payments, and they are applied the same way to everyone. Depending on what your circle agreed: the member may pay a penalty fee, they might be moved later in the payout queue, or in severe cases, they could be removed from the circle. All of it is agreed when joining and applied automatically, not decided by a person after the fact.

zkLogin is a cutting-edge authentication system that's actually more secure than traditional passwords. It uses zero-knowledge proofs to verify your identity through social accounts (Google, Facebook, etc.) without putting your personal information on the public record. You get the convenience of a social login without a seed phrase to lose.

Several things work together: 1) contributions sit in a per-cycle escrow contract rather than with a treasurer, 2) each cycle's recipient is fixed when the round opens, so the pot can only be claimed by that member, 3) you sign every transaction yourself — we hold no key that could sign for you, 4) the rotation order and every payment are recorded on chain for the whole circle to see, and 5) the contract code is public and auditable. What this does not do is remove risk: software can contain bugs, and a member who stops contributing can still leave your payout short. See our risk disclosure for what you are taking on.

Members can leave circles, but there are important considerations: 1) If they haven't received their payout yet, they may forfeit their contributions (depending on circle rules), 2) If they've already been paid, they must complete their remaining contribution obligations, 3) Some circles allow transferring membership to a trusted replacement, 4) All departure rules are set when the circle is created and applied the same way to everyone.

Some circles turn on an identity verification requirement — usually because the circle operates in a region where regulations require it, or because the admin wants an extra layer of trust between members. Verification is a one-time check arranged through your circle admin: once you're verified, an attestation is recorded on-chain against your account and your contributions and payouts go through normally until it expires. Njangi On-Chain never sees or stores your identity documents — checks are performed by licensed verification partners, and only the pass/fail attestation touches the blockchain. If you're seeing a verification prompt, ask your circle admin to start your verification.

Your circle's money is not held by us and does not depend on our app being up: it sits in the escrow contract on a public network run by thousands of independent operators, and the record stays readable even if this website is unavailable. What this does not do is make your account recoverable if you lose access to the social account you signed in with — sign-in is currently one-way, so keep access to that account.

Both options have benefits: Create a new circle if you want to invite specific friends/family, set your own rules and schedule, or start with people you already trust. Join an existing circle if you want to start immediately, connect with new community members, or find circles with specific contribution amounts that match your budget.

The contract allows 3 to 20 members. On the Free plan a circle can have up to 3 members; a Premium subscription raises that to the full 20. Smaller circles come round faster but pool a smaller amount each turn; larger circles pool more but mean a longer wait between your turns. Most groups land somewhere in the middle.

Contribution frequency is set when creating or joining a circle. Common options include: weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, or quarterly. Most circles use monthly contributions as it aligns with salary cycles and gives everyone predictable payment schedules. The schedule is fixed when the circle is created, and tracked automatically.

Currently, Njangi On-Chain works through your web browser on any device (mobile, tablet, desktop). The interface is fully responsive and works great on mobile browsers. We're planning a dedicated mobile app for iOS and Android in the future, which will offer push notifications and even easier access to your circles.

Rotating savings and credit associations exist in virtually every culture worldwide, each with their own name and traditions: Njangi (Cameroon), Tontine (French-speaking Africa), Sou Sou (Caribbean), ROSCA (Economics), Chama (Kenya), Hui (China), and dozens more. We honor all these traditions while providing a universal platform that serves every community.

While we modernize the financial infrastructure, we preserve cultural elements through: customizable circle ceremonies and rituals, support for traditional meeting schedules, cultural naming and language options, community celebration features, and integration with diaspora communities. Technology enhances tradition rather than replacing it.

Yes — this is one of the main reasons the product exists. A circle can include family at home and relatives abroad, so a njangi no longer has to end at a border. Contributions are made in a digital dollar so everyone is paying the same agreed amount regardless of where they live.

Njangi On-Chain is non-custodial coordination software for savings groups: we never hold, move, or take a cut of member funds. Rules about crypto and about savings groups differ by country, and whether any particular rule applies to you depends on where you live — please check your local law. We are not able to give you legal advice about your situation.