Vodacom Lesotho has launched Tsetela, a mobile-based investment solution aimed at expanding access to formal investing among the country’s population.
Developed by Vodacom subsidiary VCL Financial Services in partnership with STANLIB Lesotho, Tsetela – which means ‘to invest’ – enables M-Pesa customers to begin building value directly from their mobile wallets. This will help to consolidate M-Pesa’s role in Lesotho’s financial ecosystem by offering regulated investment opportunities.
Tsetela is aimed at extending M-Pesa beyond everyday transactions into wealth-building. Eligible individual M-Pesa customers and Mokhatlo Group Savings customers can use the service to invest directly from their wallets, earn daily interest, view their balances through USSD and request withdrawals, in line with applicable product terms, conditions and turnaround times.
M-Pesa is trusted across urban, peri-urban and rural communities, so an investment service launching via this platform removes barriers – including distance, paperwork, perceived complexity and assumptions about high entry requirements – that have long kept many Basotho (the people of Lesotho) outside formal financial markets. Tsetela thereby provides customers who have traditionally relied on cash-based or community savings channels with a channel for regulated investing.
Speaking at the launch, Teboho Shelile, on behalf of the Minister of Finance and Development Planning, said: « Product innovation is strongest when driven by the private sector, with government creating an enabling policy and regulatory environment. Financial inclusion remains central to economic development and no country can achieve meaningful growth without widening access to investment opportunities. »
Vodacom Lesotho Chief Executive Officer, Mohale Ralebitso, said: « Financial inclusion goes beyond access to services; it enables Basotho to participate more fully in the economy and plan more confidently for the future. Even a modest investment of M1 [ZAR1 / US$0.06] can build value when placed within a structured and regulated investment environment. Tsetela is being introduced at a level that is accessible and aligned with the means of our people. As the product matures, we intend to expand the range of available portfolios. »
STANLIB Lesotho Managing Director, Mohlabinyane Mohapi, added: « Traditional investment channels have excluded many Basotho through barriers such as bank account requirements and high minimum investment thresholds, in some cases starting at M5,000 [US$296]. Tsetela seeks to remove these barriers and deepen financial inclusion. To build public confidence, STANLIB is licensed by the Central Bank of Lesotho and operates within a comprehensive regulatory framework. Investor funds are segregated from company funds, operations are subject to annual audit, and compliance reporting is undertaken in line with applicable requirements. An independent trustee also oversees performance and regulatory adherence. We maintain a structured risk management framework to identify, monitor and manage risk appropriately, making the product well suited to short-term investors, risk-averse Basotho and individuals who require liquidity. »