Fintech Revolution Economic Empowerment NPC (FREE)

Reg no (2024/812637/08)

Is a Non-Profit Company that focuses on using Fintech to increase financial inclusion to the informal sector, making a mark in the formalisation of the sector and assisting MSME's close the financing and investment gap for them to operate at all levels in the economy. This also includes the reduction of transaction costs of doing business in this sector.

Mission Statement

FREE is a Non-Profit Company that exists to implement fintech solutions to improve the lives of South Africans that have livelihoods in the informal sector.

Vision Statement

FREE aims in becoming a pillar of support with greater reliance to its proposed solutions in the informal sector of South Africa. Transforming the operations of the sector and leading the sector to formalisation.

Our Values

  • SA People First: More that 60% of the South African population operates in the informal sector FREE with the use of FINTECH aim to support operations in this sector to uplift this population from poverty, unemployment and social protection issues.
  • Fiduciary Duty: FREE has a duty to the sector that it serves and acts in its best interests.
  • Transparency: FREE operates with transparency to its beneficiaries and funders where regular reports are published to all our stakeholders.
  • Inspiration: FREE aims to provide leadership in a sector that is relied on and making it a great success for all its beneficiaries.
  • Integrity: FREE conducts all its initiatives with compliance with all governance standards.

Our Strategic Plan

FREE aims to unlock more than R 10 million to the reformation of the informal sector to a sector that will support and transform South African lives by reducing poverty, hunger, unemployment and access to education. We aim to achieve this target in the next 2 years.

Service Offering

The NPC will provide the following services:

  • Raising of Concessionary funding to address issues pertinent in the Informal sector : Social protection, Financing gap to small businesses, addressing economies of scale in sub sectors, legal compliance with formal intermediaries and institutions and infrastructure investment to ease operations in the sector.
  • The NPC also provides for policy advocacy in the sector for the Informal sector to have a voice to help in making the functioning of the sector to be fair and just for all that operate in it.
  • Also provide training and other awareness campaigns within the informal sector.

FREE Target Markets

Our work focuses on the following groups and individuals within the South African economy.

  • Informal Sub-Sector operators: Hawkers, Transportation, Convenience store owners , Artisan businesses, car workshop , food businesses, liquor stores etc.
  • Formalised Intermediaries: Co-operative Financial Institutions, Co-operative Banks , lending institutions, Friendly Associations.
  • Formalised Groupings: Co-operatives , Associations, Trade Unions and Stokvels.
  • Other operators in the informal Sector.