53 Financial Landscape ings. The group leader’s effectiveness as head of the savings group was critical, as he or she set the consistency and structure and maintained a strong relationship with all savers. In some cases when the group had over 100 members, the group leader did not participate in the lucky draw but charged a service fee for keeping money from everyone as mentioned by Lin, pony cart driver from Nay Pyi Taw. “If there are over 100 members in a group, the leader just takes care of the keeping money he does not have to pay, he/she gets service charge from it. The members have to draw a number and wait until that number comes. But, they have to save every day the amount that they have agreed upon. It is not legal and usually done with mutual understanding.” Phyu (Tailor, Nay Pyi Taw) was the peer group leader and saved money for 15-20 people. They came to save MMK 1000 ($1) with her every evening. These groups were typically so popular because of how they were organised. Since these savings networks were comprised of people from similar social networks, financial strata and occupations, the members had similar income cycles. This allowed members to shape the savings plan to fit their needs. The amount saved depended on members’ income levels. Most of the MEs saved from MMK 500 to1000 ($0.5-$1) in the group savings. The reason MEs preferred the group saving system was because they knew the exact time when they would receive their savings, and so could plan ahead. Since each member had an equal opportunity of being selected for an early cash-out, they could use the lump sum of savings ahead of time without interest. Considering the high informal interest rates in Myanmar, access to capital without interest was a significant perk for the members, even if they had to wait a few months for their payout. If one member was saving alone, it would take him eight months to save this same amount. Members that drew low numbers in the lottery were essentially receiving an interest-free advance, with payback in instalments. Olivia (Hair dresser, Yangon) used to save money in peer groups till 2009 with 20 people. She felt it was easier to do group saving as she only had to give a little amount everyday and the leader came to collect it. She discontinued it after 2009 as most of her money was going into her children’s education. Olivia used to save money till 2009