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Kiva.org: So sucessful it has run out of projects to fund
- jakewolf 19y agoToo bad they don't fund American startups...
- randallsquared 19y agoEven YC gives a lot of money compared to Kiva loans. :)
- inovica 19y agovery true :) Not sure what some of the Kiva entrepreneurs would do with the equivalent of $1 million
- pius 19y agoNot when you normalize for the startups' host country GDP.
- randallsquared 19y agoSince the comment to which I replied specified "American", YC's funding is already normalized for the startups' host country GDP.
- inovica 19y agoWhy not set up a kiva-like site for American startups? Oh, hang on - Kiva has virtually no defaulters on its loans, so maybe scrap that idea.
- david927 19y agoI thought of the same thing. I, for one, would be willing to take investment as a loan.
- inovica 19y agoExactly. And in doing so that would tell me you will be more committed to your business. Interesting - someone should do it. Now, is anyone on here not busy?
- rms 19y agoThe closest you have is www.prosper.com, which has much higher interest rates, default rates, and a maximum loan that is too low for most startups.
- imsteve 19y agoThe analog here would be credit cards or student loans. Perhaps surprisingly, even in some more developed countries credit can be terribly hard to get.
- deleted 19y ago[deleted]
- migpwr 19y agomore like they don't know this exists...
- jamescoops 19y agoif you're a jobless bum in the third world chances are you starve - you might not have a job but you'll be doing something to survive
- michael_nielsen 19y agoDoesn't it seem rather more likely that people simply haven't heard about it?
- dcurtis 19y agoKarma shouldn't affect what you have to say, and it shouldn't make you retract your statement; it just indicates that other people don't agree with you. Your editing to remove the unpopular comment made me downvote you.
- deleted 19y ago[deleted]
- migpwr 19y agoI didn't downvote you originally but I will do it now for being a little gutless... why take your statement down simply because you're being downvoted?
- deleted 19y ago[deleted]
- migpwr 19y agoSo what you're saying is on top of being gutless you're also not funny? tough beat ;-)... oh man, another delete? run imsteve run!!!
- edw519 19y ago"The default rate to date is 0.16 percent." Stunning. Compare that to the ho-hum attitude many Americans have toward credit responsibility. I'd ask what's happened to our country, but I'm afraid you guys might actually answer.
- imsteve 19y ago> Compare that to the ho-hum attitude many Americans have toward credit responsibility. So these third world countries are so successful because their businesses don't take any risks?
- migpwr 19y agoJust to add a something... you're also talking about a potential life changing opportunity. When was the last time you used your credit card and felt like it would change your life? If it did change your life for the better you would probably want to give back to the system, no? I think most people would... It has nothing to do with being american, it's the conditions these people are living in that make them appreciate the help.
- deleted 19y ago[deleted]
- imsteve 19y agoIs this a counterpoint to my comment?
- migpwr 19y agoNo, not exactly... I was trying to add that the borrowing being done on kiva is not the same as the "ho-hum" loans being taken out by "americans". If someone really helps you get ahead then it's likely you will want to repay them and I think that's what you can see happening at kiva. It's not a big home loan or a credit card... it's a chance to really help improve their lives. You should man up and repost the comment you made and then deleted...
- dcurtis 19y agoI am absolutely stunned by the percentage delinquency for these loans. After going through the site for a while, I can't find a single loan that has been defaulted or delayed. I don't understand why a paraguayan store owner would need $1075 to stock her store (http://www.kiva.org/app.php?page=businesses&action=about&id=34023 http://www.kiva.org/app.php?page=businesses&action=about...), but it certainly seems like these kinds of investments are kick-starting entrepreneurial activity in places where it was traditionally impossible or exceedingly difficult. I think Kiva is my favorite new business because it truly does raise the social welfare of the world while also being a startup.
- wumi 19y agoAnybody interested in social entrepreneurship should definitely read this book: http://www.howtochangetheworld.org/ http://www.howtochangetheworld.org/ I read bout Kiva, Ashoka, and the Grameen bank a few years back (which was the basis for micro-loans and its inventor won a nobel prize). An excellent read to show how innovative minds (read: startups) are changing the world
- felipe 19y ago"The Fortune At The Bottom Of The Pyramid" is excellent too: http://www.amazon.com/Fortune-Bottom-Pyramid-Eradicating-Publishing/dp/0131877291/ http://www.amazon.com/Fortune-Bottom-Pyramid-Eradicating-Pub...
- BvS 19y agoIf not seen yet you should have a look at the Intruders interview with Premal Shah (President of Kiva): http://uk.intruders.tv/Premal-Shah-of-Kiva-org-on-microfinance-and-helping-poor-help-themselves_a226.html http://uk.intruders.tv/Premal-Shah-of-Kiva-org-on-microfinan... I wish more ngos would be run with this kind of startup mentality!
- eru 19y agoHow high is there overhead?
- ubudesign 19y agowhen I was there few months ago, most of the individual borrowers were apparently listed by just a few none profit organizations. it made it look fake. So you would see similar borrowers from few particular regions. I guess it really isn't micro lending when an organization puts up a list of who would benefit. that's still ok. just a sense of false advertising i think. I am loosing some trust in them and something just doesn't feel right. maybe I am wrong but I hope someone comes up with a better system or other types. micro lending is great system indeed.