For close to a decade, PiggyVest has democratised saving for Nigerians of every age and income class. If you’ve tried to improve how you save at any point in the past eight years, you’ve surely come across PiggyVest, Africa’s first and foremost savings app. With over 4.7 million users, PiggyVest has helped many Nigerians navigate their finances, build better saving habits and meet their money milestones.
PiggyVest is a free-to-sign-up savings app that allows you to save and invest your money securely. The app, which launched in 2016 as Piggybank.ng, has evolved to include five more really cool saving and investment options for different kinds of savers.
What are the core PiggyVest features?
1. Piggybank: The pioneer PiggyVest plan. Piggybank savings plan helps you build financial discipline by automating your savings at your preferred frequency (daily, weekly or monthly). You can earn up to 10% per annum on your savings.
2. Target Savings: Targets are your best option for group or individual goal-oriented savings — you can save alone, with friends, with your partner or even with strangers. Earn an interest of up to 9% annually while saving to meet your unique goals, like a vacation or starting a new business.
3. Investify: With Investify, you can earn up to 35% annual interest when you invest in our pre-vetted investment opportunities (from real estate to corporate debt notes). With affordable, low to medium-risk investment opportunities, it’s a great way to build out your investment portfolio.
Flex Naira: This plan works best if you want to save for emergencies, as you still have access to your funds. Flex Naira allows you to earn up to 8% interest annually, but you also lose this interest if you exceed 4 withdrawals a month. This condition is to help you build financial discipline.
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Flex Dollar: If you’re trying to grow your portfolio in FX, then you should explore Flex Dollar. With up to 7% per annum interest, this feature has no downsides.
Safelock: The star of this article. Safelock works like a personalised fixed deposit that allows you to earn up to 13% interest on your savings. The best part? Your interest is paid upfront to your Flex naira wallet, giving you some extra cash to spend (or save).
How does PiggyVest Safelock really work?
PiggyVest’s Safelock allows you to lock up funds for 10 to 1,000 days. You must note that money saved in your Safelock cannot be broken — that’s the whole point; to help you resist temptation and hold yourself accountable. Also, the interest earned on your Safelock is determined by the duration of your savings.
How much interest should you expect on your Safelock?
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- For funds safelocked for 10 to 30 days, you earn ~6% per annum.
- For funds safelocked for 31 to 60 days, you earn ~7% p.a.
- For funds safelocked for 61 to 90 days, you earn ~9% p.a.
- For funds safelocked for 91 to 365 days, you earn ~10% p.a.
- For funds safelocked for 1 to 2 years, you earn ~12.5% p.a.
- For funds safelocked for 2 years and above, you earn ~13% p.a.
It is safe to keep your money in Safelock, and you can create multiple Safelocks depending on the purpose. Your interest from your Safelock is paid upfront into your Flex Naira wallet, and your mature safelocks are also paid into your Flex Wallet.
The Safelock feature is a dream come true for Nigerians looking to build financial discipline. X user, @__smallchops, said it best, “PiggyVest actually ate with the Safelock option. You mean I can lock up money for a year or more and still get the interest upfront?! Sweet.” So, if you aren’t already a dedicated user of Safelock, you can get started now by clicking here.
3 smart ways to use PiggyVest SafeLock
To make your journey even more seamless, here are three smart ways you can use your PiggyVest Safelock.
1. You can enjoy compound interest
Compound interest is the interest earned from your interest. This type of interest is very common with long-term investments. For example, you want to lock away ₦1 million for 2 years. A 13% interest will yield about ₦130,000, which is upfront. You can start compounding your money by creating another 2-year safelock that earns you another 13% on your ₦130,000. You’re then free to create another safelock with the ₦16,900 interest you just made.
You can do this again. And again. You’re welcome!
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2. You can build financial discipline
One of the primary reasons for Safelock is accountability. PiggyVest has helped many Nigerians build financial discipline while saving with ease, but sometimes, we fall into temptation and find ourselves breaking our savings.
Safelock changes all that. Like any fixed deposit, your safelock cannot be accessed until your payback date. This means even when the temptation looms, Safelock will protect you from yourself. With time, you’ll become better at financial planning and setting money aside for future use.
3. You can save towards major future expenses
Typically, Targets are best used for goal-oriented savings. But Safelock works just as well, especially if you have the bulk of the money and really do not trust yourself not to break your savings before the time comes.
You can create multiple Safelocks for different reasons: birthday or naming ceremonies, school fees, rent, or vacation. Your money is there when you need it, and what’s better than saving money and making some cool cash upfront?
