Fringe Banking in Canada: A Study of Rotating Savings and Credit Associations (ROSCAs) in Toronto’s Inner Suburbs

Abstract

Rotating savings and credit associations (ROSCAs) are regarded as a time-honoured tradition practiced by many people around the world. African Canadians value ROSCAs because of how they have helped people adjust to Canadian life. This study examines ROSCAs and the role that African Canadians have played in Canada’s social economy. It includes interviews with 77 people, 46 of whom are “Banker Ladies”—African Canadian women who create community-driven financial cooperatives in Canada’s largest financial centre, Toronto. ROSCAs have been incubating within the Canadian diaspora for the past 70 years as a way to counteract the business exclusion. For the social economy in Canada to be reflective of society, the research and theories that drive the sector must reflect a cultural awareness of the various cooperative forms led by racialized Canadians.