press release

Chow Town, Nedbank’s innovative restaurant management game on Roblox, is rolling out new features that will ensure it continues to shape how young South Africans learn about money and entrepreneurship.

Developed in collaboration with Sea Monster Entertainment, Nedbank created Chow Town with the primary objective to engage children in an immersive, educational experience that helps them develop crucial business and financial management skills.

The game was launched in March 2023 and has enjoyed stellar success and growing popularity among South African youth. Since its launch in March 2023, Chow Town has garnered more than 122 800 unique visitors and recorded over 237 000 plays. For a game that blends entertainment with financial education for children between 9 and 12 years old, these numbers represent significant success.

Now, in response to player feedback, Chow Town is introducing 2 exciting new features designed to enhance gameplay and the educational value of the experience. Players will be able to hire waitrons to assist in serving their virtual restaurant’s customers – a highly requested addition that makes running a restaurant smoother and more strategic. In addition, a new interest-earning feature allows players to accumulate interest on the money their restaurant generates, reflecting real-world financial practices.

According to Khensani Nobanda, Group Executive of Marketing and Corporate Affairs at Nedbank, these updates not only enhance Chow Town’s appeal, but also support Nedbank’s goal of teaching kids how to grow and manage a business while making smart money choices. ‘We wanted to create something that goes beyond traditional financial education,’ she explains, ‘and with Chow Town, we’re offering kids the opportunity to learn by doing, in a fun and interactive way. It’s about nurturing their entrepreneurial spirit early on, so they can develop skills that will serve them for life.’

According to Jade Duckitt, Creative Director at Sea Monster Entertainment, what sets Chow Town apart from other educational tools is its seamless integration of learning into an environment where kids are already comfortable and entertained – the highly popular virtual world of Roblox. ‘Nedbank didn’t just stick their brand on a pre-existing game,’ she explains. ‘Together, we built something unique from the ground up, and even involved kids as “consultants” in the process. This makes the game as fun as it is educational, which is why it resonates with players.’

A standout feature of Chow Town is how it blends real-world financial principles into gameplay. Children playing Chow Town aren’t merely learning about money in a classroom-style setting – they’re making decisions about how to invest in and expand their restaurant, facing real-life business challenges in a safe and controlled environment.

The newly added interest-earning feature, for example, mirrors the interest rate of Nedbank’s MyPocket savings tool, which comes linked with the MiGoals4Kids account. This brings a tangible connection between the virtual and real worlds, helping children understand savings and compound interest in a relatable way. Every day they log back in, players will see their in-game savings grow – just like they would when they access their MiGoals4Kids bank account on the Nedbank Money app.

Importantly, Chow Town has also been designed to be inclusive. The game is available on Roblox, a platform that can be accessed on most smartphones and tablets, which ensures it can reach a wide audience. Given the high mobile penetration across Africa, the game is accessible to the majority of children on the continent, which Nobanda points out is key to its educational impact and transformative potential.

‘Chow Town isn’t just about learning about money; it’s about creating opportunities,’ she emphasises. ‘Given the massive unemployment challenges most of Africa’s young people will continue to face in the future, entrepreneurship is imperative. This game reflects Nedbank’s commitment to building the next generation of South African business owners and encouraging them to think big and take control of their future.’