CGCents app is a stress-free, simple and digital app that helps people to use technology to manage their personal finances and family wealth. As a trusted financial partner, the app helps people to:

  • Determine net worth. The app enables people to enter the amounts, viewing the status and analysis of the net worth
  • View spending pattern and manage cash flow. This entails entering amount of income and expenses, viewing the analysis of spending pattern and making important spending decisions
  • Use a simplified budgeting process. The process helps people to categorize expenses to what is essential, important but not essential, and not important; optimize budget (using a % of importance scroll bar); capture monthly actual expenditure and view budget reports
  • Calculate the amounts of their financial goals and automatically link with the budget for implementation
  • Access the market on-line and clients support

Description of Key Features of CGCents

Visit to CGCents-Podcast for a quick description of key features of CGCents

Net worth

  • It is the total value of your wealth
  • Calculated as Total Assets – Total Liabilities
  • A positive (increasing) net worth indicates that you have more assets than liabilities, which is a good thing
  • A negative (decreasing) net worth shows that you have more liabilities than assets, therefore you may need help on personal financial planning

Real Net Worth

  • It is total value of your wealth less personal use assets
  • Calculated as Net Worth – Total Personal Use Assets
  • In other words; Real Net Worth = Investment Assets + Liquid Assets – Total Liabilities
  • You should spend more money in investment assets than personal use assets in order to create more wealth

Asset

  • Any physical or intellectual property that hold which raises your net worth or income
  • For example, a rental building, rental car, business – and others
  • Classes of assets are liquid assets, investment assets, and personal use assets including other valuable possessions

Liquid Assets

  • Include cash (money in hand, mobile money etc.) and cash equivalents
  • Cash Equivalents are liquid assets that can be converted into cash very quickly
  • Examples: treasury bills (91-182 days), money market funds, merry go round / table banking

Investment Assets

  • Comprise items that generate substantial income including higher fixed income and growth potential, depending on risk tolerance
  • Examples: Treasury bills (364 days), treasury bonds, corporate bonds, bond funds, Savings and Credit Co-operative Societies (SACCO) shares, Real Estate Investment Trusts (REiTs), Rental property, farm land, stocks / shares (securities exchange), private equity / shares in own business, equity funds, balanced funds, investment linked life assurance policies, retirement schemes, investment groups – and others.

Personal Use Assets

  • Consist of items of basic needs and others that people acquire to gratify egos, social approval or an elevated lifestyle
  • Are “liabilities” in that they do not earn any money, instead, you spend money on them e.g. maintenance costs of a car, house etc.
  • Examples: Personal or family residential house / home, personal cars, household furniture and properties etc.
  • However, basic needs like housing, clothing and food must be affordable and meet the desired use

Liability

  • Liabilities include loans, debts and financial obligations that you owe to others and it needs to be paid back
  • They can be acquired to finance investments and personal use assets 
  • A liability also means something that costs you money without a compensating income, e.g. a residential house or personal use car that incurs maintenance costs
  • A liability is not necessarily a bad thing; such as mortgage to purchase a home or a loan to finance a well-managed business
  • Before taking a debt, consider that:
    • It must be affordable and
    • Benefit delivered from the loan must be higher than the cost of debt (interest)

Investment Liabilities

  • Are loans acquired to finance investment opportunities like rental property, agricultural land, a commercial venture etc.
  • Also referred to as good debts in the sense that they are used to finance income generating ventures or appreciating asset
  • Caution on investment debts:
    • Get correct information about investment before taking the debt. This is because you will still be required to pay the debt even if the asset fails
    • Ensure the return from the investment is more than the cost of the debt

Personal Liabilities

  • Personal loans are acquired to finance personal use assets and other possessions, examples:
    • Home mortgage
    • Car loans
    • Credit cards
    • School loans
    • Equipment Loans (Asset Financing) etc.
  • Also referred to as bad debts, because the:
    • Personal use assets acquired do not generate income and
    • Benefits accruing from their use may be less than the costs of acquiring and maintaining them

Cash Flow

  • It is a record of income (cash inflows), expenditure (cash out flows) and the net cash flow (balance) left after spending
  • Main sources of income are:
    • Employment income: salaries, bonuses, commissions etc.
    • Passive income: business, farming, property rental income etc.
    • Portfolio income: interest, dividends, royalties etc.
    • Professional practice such as for lawyers, accountants, doctors, engineers etc.
    • Sports and celebrities
    • Inheritance – and others
  • Basic Rules on expenditure
    • Do not spend more than you earn
    • Spend less than income and put the money left to savings and investments
    • Savings and investments will then earn additional income overtime to help you meet specific financial needs (goals)
    •  Master your spending habits by budgeting and controlling your expenses
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