Frequently asked questions

CIRCUL (سركل in Arabic) is an app to organise savings circles (jameya, ROSCA) with family and friends: the schedule, the turn order, and a clear record of who has paid and who has received. It is an organising and record-keeping tool, not a bank.

A group of people who each pay a fixed amount on a fixed schedule, usually monthly. Each turn one member receives the total, until everyone has received once. It is also called a ROSCA, a tontine or a committee.

No. CIRCUL never holds, moves or guarantees money. Members transfer contributions from their own bank accounts to the organiser, and the organiser transfers each payout to the recipient. CIRCUL only records what members report and confirm. Only join circles with people you trust.

No. CIRCUL offers no loans, pays or charges no interest and does no credit scoring. It takes no percentage of the money in your circle and charges nothing on transfers.

CIRCUL is in a private TestFlight beta. It is coming soon to the App Store and Google Play. Contact us through the support page if you would like to try it.

CIRCUL launches first in the United Arab Emirates, with amounts in AED and UAE IBANs. More Arab countries are coming soon.

Arabic (the default, with full right-to-left layout), English and French. This website is also available in all three.

Directly to the circle’s organiser, from your own bank account, to the IBAN shown in the app. After you transfer, tap “I’ve sent it” so the organiser can confirm it arrived.

Once the organiser has confirmed every contribution of the cycle, they transfer the payout (the contribution × members minus one) to the recipient’s IBAN, and the recipient confirms it arrived in the app.

Check your bank app first. If it isn’t there, tap “Dispute” and give a reason; the payer is asked to send it again. Disagreements are settled between members and the organiser; CIRCUL does not decide disputes and cannot recover money.

No. The organiser sets the turn order before the start. Once the circle starts, its members and turn order are fixed.

Open the invite link the organiser sent you, or choose “Join a circle” in the app and type the 6-character invite code, such as K7Q 4MP. The organiser may need to approve you. Joining is free.

Yes. Turn on the hide-my-name option when you join or later on the circle screen. Other members then see your CIRCUL alias, such as “Golden Falcon / الصقر الذهبي”, or a nickname you choose. The organiser always sees your name.

Only whoever has to pay you. The organiser sees each recipient’s IBAN, and members see only the organiser’s IBAN.

When you scan an IBAN, the text is read on your phone and the photo is not uploaded. When you attach a proof of transfer, the amount, date and reference are read on your phone for you to check. Attaching the image is optional; if you do, only you and the organiser can see it, and it is deleted 90 days after the circle ends.

With your mobile number and a 6-digit SMS code (UAE +971 numbers at launch), with Apple, or with Google.

Joining is free. Your first circle is free to create and you get 3 welcome CU. After that a circle costs 1 CU for 2–6 members, 2 CU for 7–12 and 3 CU for 13–24, paid once when you create it. CU are sold in in-app packs of 5, 15 and 40.

No. CU (CIRCUL credits) are only for creating circles. They cannot be withdrawn, exchanged for cash, transferred to another user or used to pay contributions, and they do not expire.