Group Pools
Ajo, esusu, a birthday gift, splitting rent — money between people is usually the messy part. A Group Pool lets everyone put money into one place and have it paid out by a rule agreed up front. No collector, no spreadsheet, no “who hasn't paid?” Start one in the app or on WhatsApp, share the link, and everyone joins from their own chat.
Nobody can run off with the money
In traditional ajo, one person holds the cash — and that's exactly where it goes wrong. In Arcle, contributions are held by the platform, never in any member's wallet, and the payout follows the rule set when the pool was created. Not even the person who started it can change the terms or take the pot early.
How it works
In chat: “start a pool for rent, ₦10000 each”. Say who it’s for (e.g. “for @ada”) to make it a gift pool.
You get a pool code and a link. Drop it in any WhatsApp group, DM it, post it anywhere.
Members open the link, see the exact terms and who’s in, and agree before putting in a naira.
Paid from your Arcle balance — no signature needed, it’s not an on-chain transfer. Everyone can see who has paid.
When the moment comes, the creator releases the pot and it pays out by the agreed rule.
Kinds of pool
Gift pool
Everyone chips in and the whole pot goes to one person — a birthday, a send-off, a medical bill, aso-ebi. The beneficiary is fixed when the pool is created and can't be switched later.
Target pool
A group saves toward something together. When it's released, each member gets back exactly what they put in — the group is the motivation, not a redistribution.
Split pool
One person covered the bill; everyone else pays their share back to them. The pot releases once everyone has paid.
What keeps it honest
- The platform holds the money — never a member's wallet, so there's no collector to disappear.
- Terms are locked at creation — the amount, the type, who receives it. Nobody can change them after people have joined.
- Everyone agrees before paying — you see the full terms and the member list on the join screen first.
- Everything is visible — every member can see the pot, the roster, and exactly who has paid.
- Payout is automatic and fixed — it follows the rule, not somebody's decision.
Fees
Arcle charges 0.2% per contribution — about ₦20 on ₦10,000 — added on top, so the pot always receives your full contribution. The person who created the pool takes nothing; there is no organiser's cut.
While we're in pilot
- Pools are capped at 30 members, and ₦500,000 / $500 per contribution.
- Rotating ajo — where the pot goes to a different member each cycle — isn't available yet. It's the one format where an early recipient can walk away and leave everyone else short, so we're building the protections for it before we ship it.
Pools work identically in the app and on WhatsApp — same pool, same money, whichever you open.