A traditional West African savings arrangement, and still widespread in Ghana.
In the common form, a susu collector visits daily and takes a fixed small amount. At the end of the month they return the total, keeping one day’s contribution as their fee.
You pay for the privilege of saving. People do it anyway, because the discipline works and because a collector who comes to your stall is more accessible than a bank branch.
The rotating form — a group who each contribute and take the whole pot in turn — also exists, and is the origin of the “sou-sou” savings clubs found across the diaspora.
Licensed susu companies are now regulated by the Bank of Ghana. Unlicensed collectors are not, and money has been lost.