Telco product distributor, Informal Solutions has reassured 'jobbers' that Money for Jam (M4JAM) will improve as new features are added over the coming months. The company announced its acquisition of the micro-jobbing platform, which has experienced financial difficulty, after starting the process to purchase nearly a month ago.

Richard Dunn, CEO of Informal Solutions said that while they will retain certain aspects of their newly acquired venture, including by trading under the name M4JAM, a few changes can be expected.

"M4JAM will not be available through Wechat because we are in the process of developing our own app, but generally it will still be app-and web-based with a future USSD solution. What we are doing now is enhancing the existing platform and aligning it with our current strategy and the relaunch can be expected in the last quarter of this year."

Dunn also revealed that changes have been made to the team leading M4JAM. "We've purchased Money for Jam from the existing shareholders, so Andre Hugo and Warren Venter are no longer in control of the business. We have recruited the key staff money within Money for Jam who have joined us on our journey. Myself and our chairman Andy Payne are going to be running the platform."

While he would not confirm the value of the deal, Dunn believes they paid the right price for the platform.

"We were in the process of building our own platform and it was a case of right time, right place and unfortunately it is their loss and our gain - if you can put it that way. I think if we had to start building this platform from scratch it would have taken us another year or a year-and-a-half, with all the lessons and everything that comes along with it to be in the position we will be in in the last quarter of this year."

M4JAM has not lost its value

M4JAM currently has a community of 130 000 jobbers that have signed onto the platform with three quarters of them in the mid-to-high LSM (Living Standard Measure) bracket according to Informal Solutions.

The new owners say more focus will now be given to the lower LSM category in order to create more value. Dunn stressed that M4JAM has a lot of potential, although a rollout outside of South Africa is not in any of their plans over the next few years.

"I think it is a dynamic platform and it is sad that it did not work initially. I think the crucial component that we are going to ensure is that the correct ratio of jobs to jobbers is maintained. We are going to add more value onto the platform and we will add capacity to use that value. We are focused on creating value for people that need it the mst and that speaks to the unemployed and underemployed. We are under tough economic times and I believe Money for Jam can play a significant role in meeting the financial gaps in a person's life while contributing to making ends meet."