Alfred Mathu, the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Hisa Africa Insurance Agency Limited, has shared how he built Sh38 million after 23 years of consistent saving.
In a video on his YouTube channel, Mathu revealed he started the saving journey in 1998 at the age of 24 years.
At the time, he was a junior employee at Old Mutual, earning a net income of Sh10,900. From the earnings, he cultivated a saving culture, strictly putting aside Sh3,000 every month.
With the Sh3,000 accounting for 30 percent of his income, Mathu had to skip entertainment as he couldn’t afford it.
“The Sh3,000 was a significant portion of my income. Then I was just barely earning Sh12,500 in gross income; the net was just about Sh10,900,” he explained.
“Those were the days when going to Carnivore was the main thing. Every Friday and Saturday, people of my age at that time used to pay Sh1,000 at the entrance, then go in, eat, drink, and dance to dawn. I couldn’t afford it because now a bigger chunk of my income was going into investments,” he added.
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As his income continued to increase, Mathu also increased his contributions. He revealed that by the time his account matured in 2023, he was contributing Sh347,000 per month.
“I moved from Sh3,000 to Sh5,000. The following year, I did a review again to Sh9,000 and the journey continued. I contributed for 23 years, and by the time this account matured in 2023 I was contributing Sh347,000 per month,” Mathu says.
He notes that in the entire 23-year saving period, he had contributed Sh17 million, which yielded Sh38.6 million.
“In investment, we always say don’t wait to invest, invest then wait. One of the lessons I learned is that a prudent person will do today what others are waiting to do tomorrow,” he added.
His story teaches the importance of discipline, consistency, patience, and cutting unnecessary debts when planning for retirement.
