Blog posts tagged with lending

May 5, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Do you remember in school when your teachers used say that imitation is the highest form of flattery?  Maybe that didn’t happen to you, but I can remember hating it when a kid next to me would copy my drawing, cupcake decoration or science project and claim it was his own idea. That said -- no matter where you fall on the flattery spectrum -- here at Kiva we think copycats are great. 

Let me explain. Over the past year, Kiva has launched partnerships with a number of organizations that are testing exciting innovations in the field. They’re... Continue Reading >>
May 5, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Have you ever wondered how a relatively small non-profit organization in San Francisco has managed to work effectively in more than 65 countries around the world? Or how new initiatives like Kiva Zip have scaled to over $1 million in loan volume within 17 months of launching?

While there are many factors that have contributed to these successes, one thing is certain -- Kiva would not be where it is today without the support and contributions of its Kiva Fellows.



Kiva's 20th class of Kiva Fellows before heading out into the field.
... Continue Reading >>
May 5, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
This is the first installment of a Mother's Day guest blog series, highlighting what Kiva makes possible for mothers, whether they are lenders, borrowers, or Kiva partners.

As we approach Mother’s Day next Sunday, we wanted to spotlight three Kiva lenders and their stories about making a difference for moms around the world. Lloyd Thompson honors his mom's charitable spirit from the other side of the world. Susan Linton makes loans in memory of her mother and grandmother. And Julie Patton uses Kiva to educate her own son about giving.

... Continue Reading >>
May 5, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
This is a guest post by Gabriela Barbosa, a volunteer Team Leader for Kiva's Review and Translation Program.

If you're reading this, chances are you want to make a difference in the world by helping entrepreneurs change their lives with small loans. Since its founding in 2005, Kiva has enabled over 900,000 of us lenders to make loans to more than 1 million borrowers. But what many people don't know is that Kiva depends on an army of volunteers to make loans available for funding on the website. This is the Review and Translation Program (RTP).
... Continue Reading >>
May 5, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
One of our favorite data visualization sites, the World Bank Tumblr recently posted this fascinating infographic about global internet use.


For a larger version of the graph you can click here.

The visualization skews a world map to demonstrate both the number of internet users per country as well as the percentage of the population with access to internet.

The size of each country on the map represents total number of internet users, and the darker the color, the higher the internet penetration. Countries with less than 2 million internet users... Continue Reading >>
May 5, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
We’re thrilled to announce our new partnership with Kubo.financiero in Mexico! Through branchless banking and other innovative services, Kubo is bringing interest rates down and making financing more affordable for the people who need it most.



Did you know that in developing countries, informal lending is a very popular way to access money? Be it for personal use or to start a company, people are quite comfortable with the idea of borrowing from relatives, friends, neighbors and acquaintances. Reasons for this vary, but oftentimes they... Continue Reading >>
May 5, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
This Passport Series has focused on the unique challenges faced by Palestinian borrowers. With skyrocketing unemployment rates, creative entrepreneurialism becomes all the more important. 

Kiva is proud to provide capital to courageous, hardworking borrowers in this part of the world. So to conclude this Passport Series, we would like to share with you stories of four entrepreneurs who -- with Kiva lenders' help -- have found success in a place with limited economic opportunity. 

A 34-year-old father of one, Basel has a disability that impedes his... Continue Reading >>
May 5, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Mothers are incredibly powerful. Not only do they give life, they give their children the foundation they need to live healthy, successful, happy lives. When you give a mother the tools she needs to do these things, there’s no limit to what she can accomplish.



Did you know that outside of the agricultural sector, in both developed and developing countries, women on average still earn less than 78% of the wages paid to men for the same work? This is a gap that refuses to close in even the most developed countries -- leaving millions of women... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
This is a guest post from Kiva Zip Director Jonny Price.

What's next?

I’m a huge West Wing fan, and one of my favorite quotes from President Jed Bartlett is that whenever his team achieves a tremendous success – broker a peace deal in the Middle East, or resolve a dispute between trade unions and their employers, for example – the President asks “what’s next?” I think it’s a great way to approach life.

Well we haven’t brokered any peace deals recently, but we are... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Little ones were buzzing about the office yesterday in celebration of Bring Your Child to Work Day!



Proud Kiva dads and their tots at Kiva HQ in San Francisco.

Celebrated the fourth Thursday of April since 1993, Bring Your Child to Work Day is a national holiday created to give kids of all ages a peek into the working world.

We kept them busy all day with a variety of projects (and pizza and cookies). Older kids had the opportunity to shadow employees with careers they are interested in, while younger kids just ate up the... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Providing loans in the Palestinian Territories is clearly very challenging. The people who live there face both high levels of poverty and scarce employment opportunities. Given this environment, we at Kiva are pleased to work with responsible and effective partners to deliver loans in both the West Bank and Gaza.

Today, we work with two of the most impactful microfinance institutions in the region, and Kiva lenders have made over $5 million in loans to more than 2,800 borrowers with their help. Noman (pictured below) is one of them who was able to improve his livelihood.
... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ


"Globalization and new technologies are often seen to have changed the world for the worse. For me, Kiva is an expression of how to harness these forces for the good, bringing together people from across the planet to change lives in a sustainable way. I want to be a part of that change by giving time as well as money."

City: Brussels, Belgium

Language: English

Review & Translation Team: The Write Stuff

Time with Kiva: 2 years and 4... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
This is a guest post contributed by Kiva Fellow Esther Honig, who is stationed with our partner Fondo Esperanza in Chile.

In a rural town outside the southern city of Curico, Chile, I’m sitting at a small fold-out table with a 60-year-old Kiva borrower. I’ve just taken photos of her posing proudly inside her business, a small cinder block restaurant that she’s owned for the past 10 years. She’s flattered to have her picture taken and to know that thousands will see her on the internet. But, in order for Kiva to use any of these images, she must... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Earth Day is this Monday! What will you be doing to celebrate and protect the earth?

Did you know you can use Kiva to do your part for the planet? By lending to help people afford clean energy, switch to organic farming practices and more, you can make the world a better place in several ways at once!

Developing countries are industrializing fast -- but we don’t have to choose between creating opportunity and preserving the environment. By financing the right technology for the people who need it most, we can do both.

On Monday,... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
We're thrilled to announce that we launched our new office in Nairobi, Kenya last night! So thrilled that we are literally jumping for joy!



Kiva staff members celebrating outside the new office.

Why Nairobi?

We're so glad you asked! It was an obvious choice because we currently have 16 field partners in Kenya -- the most we have in one country! On top of that, the United States and Kenya are currently the only countries where we're growing the Kiva Zip pilot program.

What's... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
We launched our partnership with Yellow Leaf Hammocks just over 3 months ago, and already progress is being made. Yellow Leaf provides high-wage weaving jobs to artisans in the hill tribe communities of rural northern Thailand. By creating an international sales channel for high-margin eco-luxe hammocks, Yellow Leaf empowers these marginalized people to alleviate poverty, advocate for social justice, and combat environmental degradation.

Traditional hunting and gathering in this region of Thailand has been significantly disrupted by rapid deforestation and economic development.... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ

With yesterday's release of new changes to the Kiva website, we’re excited to introduce a new dashboard to your Kiva Portfolio page. Our hope is that this new dashboard will be an easy way to visualize the impact you’re making on Kiva -- through loans, donations, invitations, lending teams, global reach, etc. 


Before:


 

After:

As Manager of Kiva’s Community Support...
Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ


Did you know that Kiva offers loans in the Palestinian Territories? Anyone who reads the news knows that this is a very challenging operating environment. Kiva is proud to be supporting creative and courageous entrepreneurs in the region.

For the month of April, we will be highlighting Palestinian borrowers and our lending activities to help people build brighter futures.

GEOGRAPHY

The Palestinian Territories are divided into two parts -- the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. The West Bank is small in area -- slightly smaller... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Looking to begin a career in international development or non-profits? Want to be a part of one of Oprah’s favorite things? Join the Kiva team as an intern and gain access to a huge personal and professional network of technology, non-profit, and microfinance professionals!

Interns are essential to Kiva’s operations and achieving its mission of connecting people through lending to alleviate poverty. There are a wide range of positions in a variety of departments, where interns work closely with staff on important, high-impact projects in a very... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
When Kiva first decided to branch into loans for clean energy and green technologies, we discovered a wealth of prospective partners offering products designed for the poor. We've been thrilled to partner with a handful already, including EarthSpark International in Haiti, Solar Sister, IluMexico and more. Now we're growing that portfolio even more by launching with UpEnergy, a social enterprise working to make clean energy accessible in Uganda, Rwanda and Central America.

Founded in 2010, UpEnergy is focused on expanding access to clean and energy-efficient cookstoves in... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ


Jonathon Stalls learned about Kiva in a college class in 2007, and three years later, he took to the streets to spread the word about microfinance. Literally. Jonathon so deeply believes in the empowerment of Kiva loans that he walked across the United States over the course of over eight months to raise awareness and funds for the cause.
 
The results are as exciting as the journey: since his quest began, Jonathon and the Kiva Walk Lending Team that supports him have lent over a half million dollars to entrepreneurs around the globe!...
Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
April -- the month of spring, flowers... and taxes.

Repayments make Kiva loans not tax-deductible in the United States. However, donations to Kiva’s operational expenses are! So remember if you made a donation to Kiva last year to declare it on your returns!

For every $1 you donate to Kiva, $9 more in loans is made possible. So not only will you be able to breathe a sigh of relief next April 15, but you’ll be helping people in the process!

If this April 15 is going to be particularly painful for you, do... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Young people everywhere are taking action to celebrate the Month of Microfinance this April, but one group of students and teachers from Overlake School in Seattle actually made the trek to spend the week with us at Kiva Headquarters in San Francisco. These impressive young students took part in a ‘Design Thinking’ exercise to help develop some of Kiva’s future projects and initiatives. 



Design thinking is a strategy for creative brainstorming that encourages participants to ideate, innovate, and continue looping back until a real... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Did you know that April is National Volunteer Month?

This is a particularly special time for us at Kiva, as so much of our operations rely on the dedication and support of our 500+ volunteers around the world!



Close to 500 Kiva Fellows have helped us make sure our partnerships are running smoothly.

Kiva supporters volunteer their time in a number of ways to fuel our mission. Whether they be interns gaining work experience in our office, Kiva Fellows traveling the world, or multi-lingual editors translating loans... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ


Industry wide it’s no secret that mobile devices will represent a significant portion of computer usage in the near future. Even today nearly 9% of Kiva’s traffic comes from smartphones, and we’ve seen these numbers grow steadily year over year. This is great news for Kiva, as it shows people are interested in making loans on their mobile phones. But we also know that we could be doing a better job helping visitors find a borrower they want to support and complete the checkout process. Looking at our mobile data we’ve noticed that visitors with mobile... Continue Reading >>

Pages

Blog posts tagged with lending

May 5, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Do you remember in school when your teachers used say that imitation is the highest form of flattery?  Maybe that didn’t happen to you, but I can remember hating it when a kid next to me would copy my drawing, cupcake decoration or science project and claim it was his own idea. That said -- no matter where you fall on the flattery spectrum -- here at Kiva we think copycats are great. 

Let me explain. Over the past year, Kiva has launched partnerships with a number of organizations that are testing exciting innovations in the field. They’re... Continue Reading >>
May 5, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Have you ever wondered how a relatively small non-profit organization in San Francisco has managed to work effectively in more than 65 countries around the world? Or how new initiatives like Kiva Zip have scaled to over $1 million in loan volume within 17 months of launching?

While there are many factors that have contributed to these successes, one thing is certain -- Kiva would not be where it is today without the support and contributions of its Kiva Fellows.



Kiva's 20th class of Kiva Fellows before heading out into the field.
... Continue Reading >>
May 5, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
This is the first installment of a Mother's Day guest blog series, highlighting what Kiva makes possible for mothers, whether they are lenders, borrowers, or Kiva partners.

As we approach Mother’s Day next Sunday, we wanted to spotlight three Kiva lenders and their stories about making a difference for moms around the world. Lloyd Thompson honors his mom's charitable spirit from the other side of the world. Susan Linton makes loans in memory of her mother and grandmother. And Julie Patton uses Kiva to educate her own son about giving.

... Continue Reading >>
May 5, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
This is a guest post by Gabriela Barbosa, a volunteer Team Leader for Kiva's Review and Translation Program.

If you're reading this, chances are you want to make a difference in the world by helping entrepreneurs change their lives with small loans. Since its founding in 2005, Kiva has enabled over 900,000 of us lenders to make loans to more than 1 million borrowers. But what many people don't know is that Kiva depends on an army of volunteers to make loans available for funding on the website. This is the Review and Translation Program (RTP).
... Continue Reading >>
May 5, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
One of our favorite data visualization sites, the World Bank Tumblr recently posted this fascinating infographic about global internet use.


For a larger version of the graph you can click here.

The visualization skews a world map to demonstrate both the number of internet users per country as well as the percentage of the population with access to internet.

The size of each country on the map represents total number of internet users, and the darker the color, the higher the internet penetration. Countries with less than 2 million internet users... Continue Reading >>
May 5, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
We’re thrilled to announce our new partnership with Kubo.financiero in Mexico! Through branchless banking and other innovative services, Kubo is bringing interest rates down and making financing more affordable for the people who need it most.



Did you know that in developing countries, informal lending is a very popular way to access money? Be it for personal use or to start a company, people are quite comfortable with the idea of borrowing from relatives, friends, neighbors and acquaintances. Reasons for this vary, but oftentimes they... Continue Reading >>
May 5, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
This Passport Series has focused on the unique challenges faced by Palestinian borrowers. With skyrocketing unemployment rates, creative entrepreneurialism becomes all the more important. 

Kiva is proud to provide capital to courageous, hardworking borrowers in this part of the world. So to conclude this Passport Series, we would like to share with you stories of four entrepreneurs who -- with Kiva lenders' help -- have found success in a place with limited economic opportunity. 

A 34-year-old father of one, Basel has a disability that impedes his... Continue Reading >>
May 5, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Mothers are incredibly powerful. Not only do they give life, they give their children the foundation they need to live healthy, successful, happy lives. When you give a mother the tools she needs to do these things, there’s no limit to what she can accomplish.



Did you know that outside of the agricultural sector, in both developed and developing countries, women on average still earn less than 78% of the wages paid to men for the same work? This is a gap that refuses to close in even the most developed countries -- leaving millions of women... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
By Jonny Price
Kiva Zip hits $1 million!
This is a guest post from Kiva Zip Director Jonny Price.

What's next?

I’m a huge West Wing fan, and one of my favorite quotes from President Jed Bartlett is that whenever his team achieves a tremendous success – broker a peace deal in the Middle East, or resolve a dispute between trade unions and their employers, for example – the President asks “what’s next?” I think it’s a great way to approach life.

Well we haven’t brokered any peace deals recently, but we are... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Little ones were buzzing about the office yesterday in celebration of Bring Your Child to Work Day!



Proud Kiva dads and their tots at Kiva HQ in San Francisco.

Celebrated the fourth Thursday of April since 1993, Bring Your Child to Work Day is a national holiday created to give kids of all ages a peek into the working world.

We kept them busy all day with a variety of projects (and pizza and cookies). Older kids had the opportunity to shadow employees with careers they are interested in, while younger kids just ate up the... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Providing loans in the Palestinian Territories is clearly very challenging. The people who live there face both high levels of poverty and scarce employment opportunities. Given this environment, we at Kiva are pleased to work with responsible and effective partners to deliver loans in both the West Bank and Gaza.

Today, we work with two of the most impactful microfinance institutions in the region, and Kiva lenders have made over $5 million in loans to more than 2,800 borrowers with their help. Noman (pictured below) is one of them who was able to improve his livelihood.
... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ


"Globalization and new technologies are often seen to have changed the world for the worse. For me, Kiva is an expression of how to harness these forces for the good, bringing together people from across the planet to change lives in a sustainable way. I want to be a part of that change by giving time as well as money."

City: Brussels, Belgium

Language: English

Review & Translation Team: The Write Stuff

Time with Kiva: 2 years and 4... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
This is a guest post contributed by Kiva Fellow Esther Honig, who is stationed with our partner Fondo Esperanza in Chile.

In a rural town outside the southern city of Curico, Chile, I’m sitting at a small fold-out table with a 60-year-old Kiva borrower. I’ve just taken photos of her posing proudly inside her business, a small cinder block restaurant that she’s owned for the past 10 years. She’s flattered to have her picture taken and to know that thousands will see her on the internet. But, in order for Kiva to use any of these images, she must... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Earth Day is this Monday! What will you be doing to celebrate and protect the earth?

Did you know you can use Kiva to do your part for the planet? By lending to help people afford clean energy, switch to organic farming practices and more, you can make the world a better place in several ways at once!

Developing countries are industrializing fast -- but we don’t have to choose between creating opportunity and preserving the environment. By financing the right technology for the people who need it most, we can do both.

On Monday,... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
We're thrilled to announce that we launched our new office in Nairobi, Kenya last night! So thrilled that we are literally jumping for joy!



Kiva staff members celebrating outside the new office.

Why Nairobi?

We're so glad you asked! It was an obvious choice because we currently have 16 field partners in Kenya -- the most we have in one country! On top of that, the United States and Kenya are currently the only countries where we're growing the Kiva Zip pilot program.

What's... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
We launched our partnership with Yellow Leaf Hammocks just over 3 months ago, and already progress is being made. Yellow Leaf provides high-wage weaving jobs to artisans in the hill tribe communities of rural northern Thailand. By creating an international sales channel for high-margin eco-luxe hammocks, Yellow Leaf empowers these marginalized people to alleviate poverty, advocate for social justice, and combat environmental degradation.

Traditional hunting and gathering in this region of Thailand has been significantly disrupted by rapid deforestation and economic development.... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ

With yesterday's release of new changes to the Kiva website, we’re excited to introduce a new dashboard to your Kiva Portfolio page. Our hope is that this new dashboard will be an easy way to visualize the impact you’re making on Kiva -- through loans, donations, invitations, lending teams, global reach, etc. 


Before:


 

After:

As Manager of Kiva’s Community Support...
Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ


Did you know that Kiva offers loans in the Palestinian Territories? Anyone who reads the news knows that this is a very challenging operating environment. Kiva is proud to be supporting creative and courageous entrepreneurs in the region.

For the month of April, we will be highlighting Palestinian borrowers and our lending activities to help people build brighter futures.

GEOGRAPHY

The Palestinian Territories are divided into two parts -- the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. The West Bank is small in area -- slightly smaller... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Looking to begin a career in international development or non-profits? Want to be a part of one of Oprah’s favorite things? Join the Kiva team as an intern and gain access to a huge personal and professional network of technology, non-profit, and microfinance professionals!

Interns are essential to Kiva’s operations and achieving its mission of connecting people through lending to alleviate poverty. There are a wide range of positions in a variety of departments, where interns work closely with staff on important, high-impact projects in a very... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
When Kiva first decided to branch into loans for clean energy and green technologies, we discovered a wealth of prospective partners offering products designed for the poor. We've been thrilled to partner with a handful already, including EarthSpark International in Haiti, Solar Sister, IluMexico and more. Now we're growing that portfolio even more by launching with UpEnergy, a social enterprise working to make clean energy accessible in Uganda, Rwanda and Central America.

Founded in 2010, UpEnergy is focused on expanding access to clean and energy-efficient cookstoves in... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
By Polly Peterson
From Kiva Walk to TEDx Talk


Jonathon Stalls learned about Kiva in a college class in 2007, and three years later, he took to the streets to spread the word about microfinance. Literally. Jonathon so deeply believes in the empowerment of Kiva loans that he walked across the United States over the course of over eight months to raise awareness and funds for the cause.
 
The results are as exciting as the journey: since his quest began, Jonathon and the Kiva Walk Lending Team that supports him have lent over a half million dollars to entrepreneurs around the globe!...
Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
April -- the month of spring, flowers... and taxes.

Repayments make Kiva loans not tax-deductible in the United States. However, donations to Kiva’s operational expenses are! So remember if you made a donation to Kiva last year to declare it on your returns!

For every $1 you donate to Kiva, $9 more in loans is made possible. So not only will you be able to breathe a sigh of relief next April 15, but you’ll be helping people in the process!

If this April 15 is going to be particularly painful for you, do... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Young people everywhere are taking action to celebrate the Month of Microfinance this April, but one group of students and teachers from Overlake School in Seattle actually made the trek to spend the week with us at Kiva Headquarters in San Francisco. These impressive young students took part in a ‘Design Thinking’ exercise to help develop some of Kiva’s future projects and initiatives. 



Design thinking is a strategy for creative brainstorming that encourages participants to ideate, innovate, and continue looping back until a real... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Did you know that April is National Volunteer Month?

This is a particularly special time for us at Kiva, as so much of our operations rely on the dedication and support of our 500+ volunteers around the world!



Close to 500 Kiva Fellows have helped us make sure our partnerships are running smoothly.

Kiva supporters volunteer their time in a number of ways to fuel our mission. Whether they be interns gaining work experience in our office, Kiva Fellows traveling the world, or multi-lingual editors translating loans... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2013 KV Kiva HQ


Industry wide it’s no secret that mobile devices will represent a significant portion of computer usage in the near future. Even today nearly 9% of Kiva’s traffic comes from smartphones, and we’ve seen these numbers grow steadily year over year. This is great news for Kiva, as it shows people are interested in making loans on their mobile phones. But we also know that we could be doing a better job helping visitors find a borrower they want to support and complete the checkout process. Looking at our mobile data we’ve noticed that visitors with mobile... Continue Reading >>

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