Chama Agreement

"Chama" means a pooled-funding campaign created on PesaBass toward a stated goal.

"Chairman" means the user who creates and manages a Chama.

"Beneficiary" means the person or artist who receives the pooled funds on release — the Chairman themselves, or another user the Chairman creates the Chama for.

"Contributor" means any user who contributes funds to a Chama.

"Pool" means the total contributions held in escrow for a Chama.

"Platform Fee" means the portion of a released Chama that PesaBass retains as its own revenue for operating, safeguarding, and administering the pooled-funding and escrow service, as disclosed in-app at the time of release. It is not a sum deducted from money belonging to the Beneficiary.

Contributions are collected through our payment partners (M-Pesa, card via Paystack, or PesaBass wallet) and held by PesaBass in escrow as part of the Pool. No party may withdraw the Pool while the Chama is open.

When a Chama reaches its goal (or the Chairman releases it early where permitted), the Pool is released. Out of the funds PesaBass has collected and holds, PesaBass pays the Beneficiary their share (the Pool less the Platform Fee) to their PesaBass balance and retains the Platform Fee as its own revenue for providing the service. The Beneficiary may then withdraw via the standard payout flow, subject to Section 6.

PesaBass retains the Platform Fee from each released Chama as its own service revenue — payment for operating, safeguarding, and administering the pooled-funding and escrow service — and it is not a sum deducted from money belonging to the Beneficiary. The Beneficiary Share is paid by PesaBass to the Beneficiary out of the funds PesaBass has collected, and the Beneficiary holds no proprietary interest in the Pool prior to release. The applicable percentage is shown in-app before release and may change for future Chamas. Payment-processor charges may also apply and are non-refundable once a contribution is collected.

Taxes. Contributors and Beneficiaries are responsible for any taxes arising from their own use of a Chama. Where the law requires, PesaBass may withhold tax or request tax information (e.g. a KRA PIN) before releasing or paying out funds.

Contributions are voluntary gifts toward the stated goal. Any reward tiers, perks or acknowledgements offered by a Chairman are a commitment between the Chairman and Contributors. PesaBass does not provide, guarantee, or mediate the delivery of rewards and is not a party to the underlying cause.

Contributions are not investments, securities, deposits, or loans. Contributors receive no equity, interest, profit share, or right to repayment, and should have no expectation of any financial return.

A Contributor should only contribute amounts they are willing to gift and should review the Chama's description before contributing.

4.4 Backer Rewards (discretionary). PesaBass may, entirely at its own discretion, recognise Contributors to selected funded Chamas as "backers" and share reward payouts with them out of PesaBass's own revenue when a funded project performs well. Backer rewards: (a) are voluntary, ex-gratia appreciation payments from PesaBass, not from the Chama pool, the Beneficiary, or any contributor's money; (b) do not alter the nature of the contribution above — a backer acquires no share, security, equity, interest, profit entitlement, or right to any payout; (c) may be any amount including zero, may stop at any time, and create no expectation of future payments; and (d) where paid, land in the backer's PesaBass balance and are withdrawable under the normal withdrawal rules. Any percentage displayed in the app for a backer reflects only the proportion PesaBass may use to apportion a discretionary payout — it is not an ownership stake.

Rotational groups are member-organised savings circles: each member contributes a fixed amount per cycle from their PesaBass balance, and when every member has paid, the whole pool for that cycle is paid to one member, rotating in the published order until every member has received the pool once.

PesaBass is a facilitator only. We provide the group tooling, hold contributions, and move funds at the group's instruction. We are not a party to the group's arrangement, we take no fee from rotational pools as at the effective date (any future fee will be shown in-app before you contribute), and we do not underwrite any member's obligation: if a member stops contributing, neither PesaBass nor the other members can compel them to pay, and remaining members bear that risk. Join groups only with people you trust.

Contributions and payouts. A cycle contribution is due from every member before the pool is released; the pool for a cycle equals the per-cycle amount multiplied by the number of members at release time. Contributions to a cycle that is cancelled before payout are refunded to contributors' balances. Once a cycle's pool has been paid to its recipient, that payment is final. New members may join only before the rotation starts; the rotation order is as shown in the group.

No money moves in a group of one. Contributions and payouts are only possible once a group has at least two members.

The Welfare Basket is member-to-member mutual aid for creators, administered by PesaBass on the members' behalf. Members contribute voluntarily to a common pool; a member facing an emergency may submit a claim, which PesaBass reviews and may approve as a relief advance paid from the pool to the member's balance.

Nature of the basket. The Welfare Basket is not insurance, not a bank, not a deposit-taking scheme, and not a credit facility. Contributions are voluntary mutual-aid gifts to the pool and are non-refundable; contributing creates no entitlement to relief, and every claim is discretionary and subject to review and to the pool's available balance.

Relief advances are repayable. An approved relief advance is an interest-free benevolent advance, not a grant: the recipient agrees to repay it to the pool once their emergency passes — from their balance directly, or (if they opt in) via an automatic sweep of a stated percentage of their available earnings until cleared — so the basket can keep helping the next member. Unrepaid advances may be set off against the member's future earnings and factored into withdrawal limits.

Administration. PesaBass reviews claims in good faith, may require evidence, may cap or decline any claim, and may enable automatic approval below a threshold. PesaBass's administration decisions are final; the pool balance shown in-app is authoritative.

If a Chama is cancelled by its Chairman (or by PesaBass), or a Chama with a deadline does not reach its goal by that deadline, every Contributor is automatically refunded their exact contribution to their PesaBass wallet.

Once a Chama has been released to the Beneficiary, contributions are final and non-refundable through PesaBass; any further resolution is between the Contributor and the Beneficiary/Chairman.

Chargebacks & reversals. If a contribution is later reversed, charged back, or found fraudulent, PesaBass may reverse the corresponding pool amount and recover it from the Chama, the Beneficiary, or the Beneficiary's balance, and may suspend the Chama while the matter is resolved.

To comply with Kenyan anti-money-laundering law (including POCAMLA) and tax requirements, withdrawing released Chama funds requires identity verification (a valid ID and KRA PIN). Large or unusual withdrawals may be subject to additional review (Enhanced Due Diligence) and may be delayed or declined where required by law.

The Chairman is responsible for describing the Chama truthfully and using released funds for the stated goal. When a Chama is created for another person, that person is the Beneficiary and receives the funds; the Chairman manages the campaign only.

Creating a Chama using another person's identity without authorisation, or misrepresenting the purpose of a Chama, is prohibited.

Eligibility. To start or receive a Chama you must be of legal age, hold an account in good standing, and provide accurate information. We may decline or unwind a Chama created by an ineligible user.

You may not use Chama to: defraud or deceive Contributors; launder money or finance illegal activity; raise funds for anything unlawful, hateful, or that violates our Community Guidelines; or evade fees, taxes, or verification. We may suspend, cancel, refund, withhold, or report any Chama that we reasonably believe breaches these terms or the law.

Fund holds & disputes. We may freeze, hold, or delay a Chama's funds (or a payout) while we investigate suspected fraud, abuse, chargebacks, legal requests, or a dispute. PesaBass is not the arbiter of disputes between Contributors, Chairmen and Beneficiaries; where we cannot safely release funds we may refund Contributors instead.

PesaBass acts only as a technology and escrow facilitator that holds and moves funds between users. We are not the organiser of, and not a party to, any Chama or its underlying cause, and we do not endorse or guarantee any Chama, Beneficiary, or outcome.

To the maximum extent permitted by law, PesaBass is not liable for the conduct of Chairmen, Beneficiaries or Contributors, the success of any goal, or the delivery of any reward, and is not liable for any indirect, incidental, or consequential loss. Our aggregate liability relating to a Chama is limited to the Platform Fee we received from that Chama.

Indemnification. You will defend, indemnify, and hold harmless PesaBass, CashBass Africa Limited, and our affiliates and staff from any claims, losses, liabilities, and costs (including reasonable legal fees) arising from a Chama you create, manage, receive, or contribute to, your breach of this Agreement, or your violation of any law or third-party right.

This Agreement is governed by the laws of the Republic of Kenya. It should be read together with our Terms of Service, Community Guidelines and Privacy Policy. We may update this Agreement from time to time; continuing to use Chama after an update means you accept the change.

Questions about a Chama or this Agreement? Reach us through in-app Support or at the contact address listed in our Terms of Service. CashBass Africa Limited, trading as PesaBass.