Episode 14: Sawa Money - A Communal Response to Building Financial Health
Financial health as a pathway to creating lasting generational wealth for all continues to be elusive in the United States.
In this episode of the More Elephant podcast, we talk with Charles Phillips, the Co-Founder and CEO of Sawa Money. Sawa, in Swahili, means it's all good, and we are in conversation with Charles to discuss the groundbreaking work the Sawa team is doing to improve the financial well-being of their members and solve the wealth gap problem, one manageable financial decision at a time.
Join us as we dive deep into the unique challenges underrepresented communities face regarding financial health and how Sawa Money is leveraging time-honored, community-based traditions to create a platform that aims to redefine how people approach their financial life, build generational wealth and achieve better financial stability. We learn about the 'Savings Wheel,’ a trust-based, communal approach to help people begin their journey to long-term financial health by providing actionable strategies primarily focused on helping alleviate the vulnerabilities those living paycheck-to-paycheck face.
Listen to this conversation as we explore the power of empathy and community-driven initiatives in revolutionizing financial stability. Discover how Sawa Money is paving the way for a more inclusive and prosperous future for all.
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Show Notes
Charles is an innovative and agile CEO and founder with over 20 years of expertise in business development, product, GTM, and strategy for finance, industrial, and technology companies. He has led everything from sales and marketing to operations and tech at various new and established software, telecommunications, technology, financial services, and professional services firms. An entrepreneur at heart, he is a disruptive builder with a track record of creating new ideas and teams that completely transform the sector.
Charles is currently the CEO of Sawa Money, a disruptive finance and marketplace innovator and technology platform that uses behavioral science to create a community support system for borrowers, offering financial products and services to new market players and bringing a path to wealth to millions of future clients.
Key More Elephant Moments in this Episode:
We discuss the formative years of Charles’ origin story, from Bangkok to Mississippi, and how that experience informed his desire to explore beyond those borders and “try to be a little bit different and color outside the lines a little bit more.”
Charles outlines the motivation for building Sawa Money and the creation of the communal ‘Savings Wheel’ as a way to put people on a path to a greater understanding of the compounding effect of sound financial decisions.
We discuss the importance of trust in financial institutions, the challenges for many in figuring out a path to homeownership, and the aim of Sawa Money to alleviate financial vulnerability to providing an easy-to-understand path to owning and living in a home.
And more…
More About Charles Phillips: Linked In | Sawa Money Website | Email
Conversation References:
Payroll.org Getting Paid In America | 2023 Survey Results
Federal Reserve | Economic Well-being of US Households 2022
Transcript
More Elephant Intro
Welcome to the latest More Elephant podcast. As I was thinking about narratives that I want to explore, one of them is something that is, I would say, incredibly personal to me, and that is this notion of how we help people lead a better financial life and build generational wealth, particularly amongst underrepresented and underappreciated communities.
And, if you look at latest stats, we, in America particularly, still have a lot of issues. I pulled up payroll.org's annual Getting Paid in America survey that they just completed. 40,000 respondents – 78% of them are living paycheck-to-paycheck. The Federal Reserve's 2022 data on U. S. households indicates that at least a third of households do not have $400 in emergency savings for when something goes wrong.
So, with that as a backdrop, I'm really delighted to welcome Charles Phillips to the More Elephant podcast as the CEO and co-founder of SAWA Money. Charles, welcome. I know we're going to have a great conversation. I know you're incredibly passionate about this space.
[00:01:42] Charles Phillips: It's a pleasure. I'm really grateful to be here. I am very passionate about this space. I struggle sometimes because I do have a latent need to evangelize, and not everyone wants to hear what I have to say about it, but your lead-in was a perfect intro because the facts are what they are.
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