These are unregulated payday loans. They only exacerbate a troubling situation. It turns desperation into debt. Debt only really seems to work as an investment

These are unregulated payday loans. They only exacerbate a troubling situation. It turns desperation into debt. Debt only really seems to work as an investment or to solve liquidity issues. The problem sounds like these debtors never had investments they were looking to finance or wanted liquidity for capital assets. They are just poor people who struggle to get by. You may criticize someone for going to debt in such short term thinking but it's hard not to empathize. If you were about to be homeless or go a day without a meal, would you take a loan?