#15 From Small Savings to Big Dreams: How Achieve Empowers Ghana’s Inclusive Financial Future
Discover how Huzaifa Abdulai and her team at Achieve are transforming financial empowerment in Ghana by making investing accessible to everyone, from mechanics to professionals. Through their innovative mobile app, they’ve built trust with over 340,000 users, enabling small savings to grow into big dreams like paying rent or funding education. Huzaifa shares inspiring stories, like a mechanic growing his savings from 1,000 to 30,000 cedis, showcasing the power of inclusive finance. Join us to explore how Achieve’s user-centric approach and fearless team are shaping Ghana’s financial future.
PODCAST
Odeta Ise
6/5/20255 min read
Let's dive into the Insight, Inspiration & Impact behind Achieve with Huzaifa Abdulai
Follow & Support Achieve
WSA Winning Year: 2024
Award: The World Summit Award
Category: Business & Commerce
Founders: Daniel Anaman, Stefan Froelich, Huzaifa Abdulai, Sharon Mensah, Seth Koomson, Kwabena Nyamekye-Dapaah, Goodnews Atachie, Richlove Danquah Agyepong
Country: Ghana
On WSA website: https://wsa-global.org/winner/achieve/
In Ghana, where a youthful population is embracing a digital world, Huzaifa Abdulai and her team at Achieve are transforming financial empowerment. As General Manager and co-founder, Huzaifa shared her journey on the Edge of Impact podcast, explaining how Achieve is helping everyday Ghanaians take control of their financial futures. Alongside co-founders Daniel Anaman, Stefan Froelich, Sharon Mensah, Seth Koomson, Kwabena Nyamekye-Dapaah, Goodnews Atachie, and Richlove Danquah Agyepong, she’s building a platform that fosters trust, bridges gaps, and changes lives. Dive into the story from inspiration to impact.
The Spark: Seeing a Need and Seizing an Opportunity
Huzaifa’s journey began with a realization while working at Petra, a leading pensions firm in Ghana. The company managed retirement savings for employees, but what about their immediate needs? Rent, school fees, and emergencies these were the priorities that demanded flexible solutions. In a country with a young population, over 60% between 15 and 45, and widespread smartphone use, mobile money has become a lifeline, allowing even those without bank accounts to transact digitally. Yet, investing remained out of reach for most, seen as something only the wealthy or highly educated could do.
This gap inspired Huzaifa and her team to create Achieve, a mobile app that makes investing simple and approachable. They started by asking a key question: Would people trust a digital platform with their money? In Ghana, trust was traditionally built through personal connections, not apps. Guided by a lean startup approach, they launched a basic version of Achieve to test the idea. To their surprise, over a thousand people joined the waiting list, eager for a solution that didn’t exist elsewhere. That early enthusiasm confirmed they were onto something big.
Building Trust One Step at a Time
Achieve’s mission hinged on earning trust. The team launched with a promise: invest small amounts, see returns, and withdraw easily. Users could start with as little as 10 Ghanaian cedis, less than a dollar, and watch their money grow. Withdrawals were processed in 24 hours, far faster than the three to five days typical of traditional fund managers. This reliability created what Huzaifa calls the “aha moment,” when users saw their first returns and realized, “This actually works!”
One user, a mechanic named Eugene, embodies Achieve’s impact. He began investing small sums from his daily transactions. Over a few years, his savings grew from 1,000 cedis to 30,000, a testament to the power of discipline and a platform that works for everyday people. Stories like his reflect Achieve’s core value: empowering everyone, no matter their background, to build wealth.
Turning Insights into Solutions
Achieve’s success comes from understanding and addressing real challenges. Many Ghanaians were trapped in a cycle of earning and spending, with little knowledge of how to invest. Financial literacy was low, and even those with money often didn’t know where to start. Achieve tackled this by combining investment tools with education. The app’s goal-setting feature lets users save for specific purposes, like rent or emergencies, and even lock funds to stay disciplined. “Why lump all your money together?” Huzaifa asked, highlighting how this feature helps users plan with purpose.
Their flagship product, DigiSave, was designed to build trust. Working with a fund manager, the team created a money market mutual fund with minimal volatility, ensuring users rarely see losses. With returns around 16% annually for a liquid product, DigiSave is a safe entry point for new investors. As users gain confidence, they can explore higher-risk options, like funds with up to 60% returns, guided by Achieve’s risk profiles and educational prompts.
The team’s ingenuity shines in their partnerships. Many fund managers lacked the tech to integrate with a digital platform, so Achieve built custom solutions. They also covered transaction fees for two years to reduce barriers, a costly move that paid off when users, seeing the platform’s value, willingly took on those fees later. Today, Achieve serves over 340,000 users, with 10,000 actively engaging and assets under management at 110 million cedis, roughly $87 million.
Values That Drive Impact
Huzaifa and her co-founders share a fearless, collaborative spirit. With a background in business administration and a passion for technology, Huzaifa thrives on creating solutions. Her team, a mix of finance experts, engineers, and analysts, built Achieve from the ground up during the COVID-19 pandemic, working remotely and challenging each other to innovate. “We’re not pushovers,” Huzaifa laughed, describing how her team debates ideas, always backing them with data and customer insights.
As a mother of three and a Muslim woman, Huzaifa is passionate about inclusion, especially for women in tech and finance. While gender equality is strong in Ghana’s formal sectors, women are underrepresented in STEM. Huzaifa hopes her story inspires others, saying, “I want someone to see me and think, ‘She’s just like me.’” Her leadership fosters an open environment where mistakes are learning opportunities, and the team’s excitement fuels their progress.
Looking Forward: Expanding the Vision
Achieve’s next chapter involves growth. The team plans to add more products, like insurance and credit, to create a full financial planning platform. They’re also exploring expansion into Kenya, Côte d’Ivoire, and Nigeria, partnering with local fund managers to adapt their model. Huzaifa dreams of a world without transaction fees or infrastructure barriers, making investing seamless for all. “Friction is the biggest hurdle,” she noted, imagining a future where innovation focuses on new ideas, not fixing foundational issues.
A Call to Collaborate
Huzaifa’s story shows how inspiration, grounded in insight, can lead to lasting impact. Achieve isn’t just a fintech platform; it’s a tool for empowering people to achieve their dreams. For entrepreneurs and innovators, Huzaifa has an invitation: “If you think this could work in your country, let’s connect.” She’s eager to partner with fund managers and fintechs to bring Achieve’s model to new markets, creating a more inclusive financial future.
Get in Touch: Inspired by Achieve’s mission? Reach out through their website or social media to explore partnerships and help empower more people to build wealth, one goal at a time.
