Blog posts tagged with lending

Mar 3, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
International Women’s Day is coming up on March 8 -- but we're celebrating all month long with Women's History Month, and talking about all the ways microfinance helps women make a difference in their lives, families and communities.



A Kiva loan helped 12 women in the Annapurna Baba Nilakantheswar Shg Group in India increase their sugarcane production.

One of Kiva's main priorities it to give women access to the tools they need to succeed. While they may not be celebrated in history books like Mother Teresa,... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
When we think about impact at Kiva, the first thing that comes to mind is the effect loans have on borrowers’ lives. From a shopkeeper in Rwanda paying back her loan successfully to a farmer in Nicaragua putting his kids through school, it’s clear that Kiva loans are changing lives each and every day.

Of course none of this would be possible without our 170+ field partners around the world. So when it comes to reaching even more borrowers with the right loans and services, we also need to enable change at the partner level. How do we plan to do this?

... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Born in Khorog, Tajikistan, Kiva intern Amniya Shahbozova is not only a talented researcher and writer, she also has an incredibly unique perspective shaped by her upbringing and international experience. We're thrilled that she's interested in pursuing a career in microfinance. She'll no doubt make a difference in many lives.

Given our focus this month on Tajikistan and how microfinance is making a difference in what is now the poorest country in Central Asia, we couldn't think of a better time for Amniya to share her experience and outlook on what microfinance... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
We’re thrilled to announce our new partnership with FUNDECOCA!

Based in Costa Rica, this nonprofit organization offers microlending services to unbanked farmers to expand their crops and supply the region with organic, fresh and healthy produce.

FUNDECOCA is unique among microfinance organizations in northern Costa Rica. Why? It works to form and fund Community Credit Committees (CCCs) that coordinate the organization’s entire lending program. Basically, this allows people who live in these extremely rural communities to decide and have a... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
We are thrilled to announce our new partnership with Youth Initiative for Community Empowerment!

In Uganda, as is the case in many African countries, women face a wide range of challenges including discrimination, low socioeconomic status and often violation of basic rights. Discrimination reduces their chances of becoming educated and economically self reliant. Moreover, women often become reliant on abusive men at home.

The same situation is seen among young women -- they become exposed to sex at an early age either for economic survival or for other reasons, and... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Brought together in July 2009 by a shared desire to fund loans that are in danger of expiring, the Late Loaning Lenders (LLL) team has grown into one of the most supportive and impactful communities on Kiva.

A little background: Kiva loan requests are posted for a maximum of 30 days. If they're not funded within that timeframe, the loan expires and the Field Partner does not receive the funds for that particular loan. The majority of loans on Kiva are pre-disbursed by the Field Partner to the borrower, so an expiring loan does not necessarily mean... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013
Made famous by its music festival, Austin’s annual South by Southwest (SXSW) calls itself the “premier... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
“To Catch a Dollar: Muhammad Yunus Banks on America” is an inspiring documentary that chronicles the introduction of microfinance into the U.S. economy.



Muhammad Yunus, known as the "father of microcredit," received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 for his work with microfinance in the developing world -- creating economic and social development from the bottom up. In an attempt to break the cycle of poverty in disadvantaged U.S. communities, Yunus brought microfinance to the United States with Grameen America in 2008. Directed... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
We're thrilled to announce that starting today Capital One is matching $500,000 in loans made to Kiva and Kiva Zip borrowers in the U.S.!

Here at Kiva, we're all about empowering small businesses. In fact, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration, these companies have created 2 out of every 3 new jobs in the country over the past 17 years. Now that's recovery!

Most of the U.S. borrowers on Kiva and Kiva Zip qualify as small business owners -- people who work long, hard hours to turn their ideas into reality. But no matter how hard they work,... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
As you may know, every two weeks, we push a bunch of updates to the website to make our lenders' lives better. This week, we're announcing some pretty cool changes.

Mobile-optimized checkout flow

We've optimized several pages on the site to make it easier to check out on your phone or tablet. Currently, these include the login and registration pages and the basket pages when you're making a loan. If you use Kiva through a third-party mobile app, you can now check out without any zooming! More page upgrades are coming, so stay tuned!... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Last January, Strathmore University became Kiva’s first university partner -- enabling lenders to make loans to low-income students for tuition and school-related supplies like laptops.

Striving toward UNDP Millennium Development Goals, Strathmore established @iLabAfrica in January 2011 with the goal to spearhead research, innovation, and entrepreneurship in the area of information and communication technologies for development.

This February 14 through 16 -- in time for Kenya's March 4 election -- @iLabAfrica and Google teamed up to host the first ever... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
In this last installment of the Passport Series focused on Tajikistan, we wanted to share with you a few success stories from the field.

Meet Nafisa.

A 29-year-old mother of two, Nafisa lives in the town of Jabar Rasulov in Tajikistan. When she was younger, family circumstances prevented her from attending college. But she was determined to find a rewarding career, and decided to apply her talents as a cook -- a skill she’d learned from her mother.



In 2005, Nafisa and her husband opened a small restaurant in the... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Earlier this month, the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Development Programme released the report "Rethinking Economic Growth: Towards Productive and Inclusive Arab Societies," stressing the need for improved governance, social justice and economic progress in the Arab world.

Recent Arab uprisings have highlighted a lack of social protection and dialogue between citizens and authorities.

According to the report, the Arab world had the second lowest productivity growth rate of any world region between 2000 and 2010. While... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
This year, Valentine's Day wasn't just about sappy cards and fancy dinners. It was about a revolution. 



Last week, thousands of women all over the world “rose” -- demanding an end to violence against women.   

Founded by Eve Ensler, creator of The Vagina Monologues and founder of V-Day, One Billion Rising is a global movement to end violence against women once and for all.

The movement gets its name from the staggering U.N. statistic that one in three women will be raped... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
This is a guest post from Bob Harris, author, adventurer, Kiva super lender, and captain of the incredible Friends of Bob Harris lending team. This is the second in a series of posts from Bob chronicling his travels around the world meeting Kiva borrowers. Read his last piece about making fireworks in Nicaragua here, and start getting excited about the release of his new book The International Bank of Bob, available starting March 5.

For my upcoming book about visiting Kiva clients in the field, I traveled around the world with side trips on five continents, visiting... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
In the spirit of Valentines Day, we're celebrating people falling in love and making connections all over the world! And, as you may know, some loans on Kiva help families pay for wedding expenses. All those happy couples borrowing on Kiva come from somewhere!

Exhibit A:



A happy couple of Kiva borrowers in El Salvador.

In many places where Kiva works, weddings are much more than fancy parties. They can have huge... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
SPECIAL OFFER: Now when new Kiva users lend to a borrower in Tajikistan, they'll get a $25 bonus to make a loan for free to any borrower! This is a rare opportunity for the first 200 lenders who join Kiva and lend in Tajikistan between Feb. 11 and 26. You will receive an email within 30 days from Kiva letting you know if you received a $25 bonus credit or not.

Read on to see why lending in Tajikistan is so important -- and influential:




Shodiya used her $1,050 loan... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
On a cold December evening in 2008, Acumen Fund's Sasha Dichter found himself in a familiar situation. Riding home on the train, he was approached by a man raising money to help the homeless. Reflexively, he denied the man his request and buried himself in his phone.

But this time something felt different. Something clicked in Sasha’s head. He felt like he had done the wrong thing by not giving the man any money. 

"Pretty soon, 'no' becomes who you are, and what you do when somebody comes to you asking for help," Sasha has... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
While the majority of microfinance models provide short-term credit with a two-year turnaround or less, there is a significant need for long-term finance in the marketplace. Long-term loans of 3 to 15 years, for example, are especially critical when borrowers are looking to finance educational expenses or agricultural investments.

The very nature of education is long-term, whereas agriculture can involve both short- and long-term loans. Longer-term agricultural investments include microforestry, organic conversion and field renewal, to name just a few.

MFIs and other... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ

In celebration of Milepoint’s two year anniversary as a Kiva lending team, we wanted to take a look back and highlight their vast achievements thus far. The Milepoint team was started on February 12, 2011 and has since grown to over 1,500 members. Brought together by their love of travel, Milepointers just surpassed $4.5 million in Kiva loans and are excited to continue their success and momentum into the future. We chatted with two of the team captains, Randy Petersen and Haung “Ho” Yu, as well as active team member Bob Kaplan, to get an update on... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ



That's right! Since its inception a mere 7 years ago, Kiva has helped serve up more than $400 million in loans to borrowers around the world. That's 524,572 loans making the world a better place for 971,438 borrowers with 99% repayment rate. An incredible achievement -- that we owe entirely to you, our lenders. 

Exactly how much is $400 million? We're glad you asked. It's approximately the same as:
  • 114 million Starbucks lattes.
  • 130 million...
Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
In 2012 alone, migrant workers around the world sent over $400 billion back home.

Unfortunately, sending money isn’t as cheap and clear-cut as you might think. On average, remittance services cost 8.96% of the amount being sent -- which is a lot given that most migrant workers don't make a lot to begin with.

Notably, costs of remittances have traditionally been highest in Africa -- undoubtedly, one of the places where the money is needed most. In 2012, about $60 billion was sent to Africa in remittances at an average transaction cost... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ



As part of our recent Kiva Insights Call, our community submitted additional questions through lending teams, and we wanted to take the time to answer the most popular questions below. Thanks again to everyone who participated; we always love to hear from you!

Q: How is Kiva making less popular loans more attractive, and what kind of feedback does Kiva provide Field Partners to help fund loans?

A: There are a few ways we work to highlight loans that may be less popular or in need of support. To start, we try to... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ


Despite the many efforts and programs in the developing world, girls are still largely disadvantaged. In general, they tend to have less access to education and fewer social and economic opportunities than their male counterparts.

One significant indicator of the well-being of adolescent girls is child marriage. While this is an issue that can also effect boys, it's impact on girls is hugely disproportionate.

Reasons for child marriage range from economic to social. In many cases, girls are married off at an early age to reduce the... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ

Team message boards update!

For all you awesome lending team members, we've made a number of improvements to the team message boards:

1) Team captains can now post featured messages to communicate important events, goals, initiatives, etc. The featured message will be highlighted as the first post on message boards and will also appear at the beginning of nightly digest emails.

2) We’ve added a panel on the right side to show loans that this team has recently talked about...

Continue Reading >>

Pages

Blog posts tagged with lending

Mar 3, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
International Women’s Day is coming up on March 8 -- but we're celebrating all month long with Women's History Month, and talking about all the ways microfinance helps women make a difference in their lives, families and communities.



A Kiva loan helped 12 women in the Annapurna Baba Nilakantheswar Shg Group in India increase their sugarcane production.

One of Kiva's main priorities it to give women access to the tools they need to succeed. While they may not be celebrated in history books like Mother Teresa,... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
When we think about impact at Kiva, the first thing that comes to mind is the effect loans have on borrowers’ lives. From a shopkeeper in Rwanda paying back her loan successfully to a farmer in Nicaragua putting his kids through school, it’s clear that Kiva loans are changing lives each and every day.

Of course none of this would be possible without our 170+ field partners around the world. So when it comes to reaching even more borrowers with the right loans and services, we also need to enable change at the partner level. How do we plan to do this?

... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Born in Khorog, Tajikistan, Kiva intern Amniya Shahbozova is not only a talented researcher and writer, she also has an incredibly unique perspective shaped by her upbringing and international experience. We're thrilled that she's interested in pursuing a career in microfinance. She'll no doubt make a difference in many lives.

Given our focus this month on Tajikistan and how microfinance is making a difference in what is now the poorest country in Central Asia, we couldn't think of a better time for Amniya to share her experience and outlook on what microfinance... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
We’re thrilled to announce our new partnership with FUNDECOCA!

Based in Costa Rica, this nonprofit organization offers microlending services to unbanked farmers to expand their crops and supply the region with organic, fresh and healthy produce.

FUNDECOCA is unique among microfinance organizations in northern Costa Rica. Why? It works to form and fund Community Credit Committees (CCCs) that coordinate the organization’s entire lending program. Basically, this allows people who live in these extremely rural communities to decide and have a... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
We are thrilled to announce our new partnership with Youth Initiative for Community Empowerment!

In Uganda, as is the case in many African countries, women face a wide range of challenges including discrimination, low socioeconomic status and often violation of basic rights. Discrimination reduces their chances of becoming educated and economically self reliant. Moreover, women often become reliant on abusive men at home.

The same situation is seen among young women -- they become exposed to sex at an early age either for economic survival or for other reasons, and... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Brought together in July 2009 by a shared desire to fund loans that are in danger of expiring, the Late Loaning Lenders (LLL) team has grown into one of the most supportive and impactful communities on Kiva.

A little background: Kiva loan requests are posted for a maximum of 30 days. If they're not funded within that timeframe, the loan expires and the Field Partner does not receive the funds for that particular loan. The majority of loans on Kiva are pre-disbursed by the Field Partner to the borrower, so an expiring loan does not necessarily mean... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013
Made famous by its music festival, Austin’s annual South by Southwest (SXSW) calls itself the “premier... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
“To Catch a Dollar: Muhammad Yunus Banks on America” is an inspiring documentary that chronicles the introduction of microfinance into the U.S. economy.



Muhammad Yunus, known as the "father of microcredit," received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 for his work with microfinance in the developing world -- creating economic and social development from the bottom up. In an attempt to break the cycle of poverty in disadvantaged U.S. communities, Yunus brought microfinance to the United States with Grameen America in 2008. Directed... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
We're thrilled to announce that starting today Capital One is matching $500,000 in loans made to Kiva and Kiva Zip borrowers in the U.S.!

Here at Kiva, we're all about empowering small businesses. In fact, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration, these companies have created 2 out of every 3 new jobs in the country over the past 17 years. Now that's recovery!

Most of the U.S. borrowers on Kiva and Kiva Zip qualify as small business owners -- people who work long, hard hours to turn their ideas into reality. But no matter how hard they work,... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
As you may know, every two weeks, we push a bunch of updates to the website to make our lenders' lives better. This week, we're announcing some pretty cool changes.

Mobile-optimized checkout flow

We've optimized several pages on the site to make it easier to check out on your phone or tablet. Currently, these include the login and registration pages and the basket pages when you're making a loan. If you use Kiva through a third-party mobile app, you can now check out without any zooming! More page upgrades are coming, so stay tuned!... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Last January, Strathmore University became Kiva’s first university partner -- enabling lenders to make loans to low-income students for tuition and school-related supplies like laptops.

Striving toward UNDP Millennium Development Goals, Strathmore established @iLabAfrica in January 2011 with the goal to spearhead research, innovation, and entrepreneurship in the area of information and communication technologies for development.

This February 14 through 16 -- in time for Kenya's March 4 election -- @iLabAfrica and Google teamed up to host the first ever... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
In this last installment of the Passport Series focused on Tajikistan, we wanted to share with you a few success stories from the field.

Meet Nafisa.

A 29-year-old mother of two, Nafisa lives in the town of Jabar Rasulov in Tajikistan. When she was younger, family circumstances prevented her from attending college. But she was determined to find a rewarding career, and decided to apply her talents as a cook -- a skill she’d learned from her mother.



In 2005, Nafisa and her husband opened a small restaurant in the... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
Earlier this month, the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Development Programme released the report "Rethinking Economic Growth: Towards Productive and Inclusive Arab Societies," stressing the need for improved governance, social justice and economic progress in the Arab world.

Recent Arab uprisings have highlighted a lack of social protection and dialogue between citizens and authorities.

According to the report, the Arab world had the second lowest productivity growth rate of any world region between 2000 and 2010. While... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
This year, Valentine's Day wasn't just about sappy cards and fancy dinners. It was about a revolution. 



Last week, thousands of women all over the world “rose” -- demanding an end to violence against women.   

Founded by Eve Ensler, creator of The Vagina Monologues and founder of V-Day, One Billion Rising is a global movement to end violence against women once and for all.

The movement gets its name from the staggering U.N. statistic that one in three women will be raped... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
This is a guest post from Bob Harris, author, adventurer, Kiva super lender, and captain of the incredible Friends of Bob Harris lending team. This is the second in a series of posts from Bob chronicling his travels around the world meeting Kiva borrowers. Read his last piece about making fireworks in Nicaragua here, and start getting excited about the release of his new book The International Bank of Bob, available starting March 5.

For my upcoming book about visiting Kiva clients in the field, I traveled around the world with side trips on five continents, visiting... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
In the spirit of Valentines Day, we're celebrating people falling in love and making connections all over the world! And, as you may know, some loans on Kiva help families pay for wedding expenses. All those happy couples borrowing on Kiva come from somewhere!

Exhibit A:



A happy couple of Kiva borrowers in El Salvador.

In many places where Kiva works, weddings are much more than fancy parties. They can have huge... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
SPECIAL OFFER: Now when new Kiva users lend to a borrower in Tajikistan, they'll get a $25 bonus to make a loan for free to any borrower! This is a rare opportunity for the first 200 lenders who join Kiva and lend in Tajikistan between Feb. 11 and 26. You will receive an email within 30 days from Kiva letting you know if you received a $25 bonus credit or not.

Read on to see why lending in Tajikistan is so important -- and influential:




Shodiya used her $1,050 loan... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
On a cold December evening in 2008, Acumen Fund's Sasha Dichter found himself in a familiar situation. Riding home on the train, he was approached by a man raising money to help the homeless. Reflexively, he denied the man his request and buried himself in his phone.

But this time something felt different. Something clicked in Sasha’s head. He felt like he had done the wrong thing by not giving the man any money. 

"Pretty soon, 'no' becomes who you are, and what you do when somebody comes to you asking for help," Sasha has... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
While the majority of microfinance models provide short-term credit with a two-year turnaround or less, there is a significant need for long-term finance in the marketplace. Long-term loans of 3 to 15 years, for example, are especially critical when borrowers are looking to finance educational expenses or agricultural investments.

The very nature of education is long-term, whereas agriculture can involve both short- and long-term loans. Longer-term agricultural investments include microforestry, organic conversion and field renewal, to name just a few.

MFIs and other... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ

In celebration of Milepoint’s two year anniversary as a Kiva lending team, we wanted to take a look back and highlight their vast achievements thus far. The Milepoint team was started on February 12, 2011 and has since grown to over 1,500 members. Brought together by their love of travel, Milepointers just surpassed $4.5 million in Kiva loans and are excited to continue their success and momentum into the future. We chatted with two of the team captains, Randy Petersen and Haung “Ho” Yu, as well as active team member Bob Kaplan, to get an update on... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ



That's right! Since its inception a mere 7 years ago, Kiva has helped serve up more than $400 million in loans to borrowers around the world. That's 524,572 loans making the world a better place for 971,438 borrowers with 99% repayment rate. An incredible achievement -- that we owe entirely to you, our lenders. 

Exactly how much is $400 million? We're glad you asked. It's approximately the same as:
  • 114 million Starbucks lattes.
  • 130 million...
Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ
In 2012 alone, migrant workers around the world sent over $400 billion back home.

Unfortunately, sending money isn’t as cheap and clear-cut as you might think. On average, remittance services cost 8.96% of the amount being sent -- which is a lot given that most migrant workers don't make a lot to begin with.

Notably, costs of remittances have traditionally been highest in Africa -- undoubtedly, one of the places where the money is needed most. In 2012, about $60 billion was sent to Africa in remittances at an average transaction cost... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ



As part of our recent Kiva Insights Call, our community submitted additional questions through lending teams, and we wanted to take the time to answer the most popular questions below. Thanks again to everyone who participated; we always love to hear from you!

Q: How is Kiva making less popular loans more attractive, and what kind of feedback does Kiva provide Field Partners to help fund loans?

A: There are a few ways we work to highlight loans that may be less popular or in need of support. To start, we try to... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ


Despite the many efforts and programs in the developing world, girls are still largely disadvantaged. In general, they tend to have less access to education and fewer social and economic opportunities than their male counterparts.

One significant indicator of the well-being of adolescent girls is child marriage. While this is an issue that can also effect boys, it's impact on girls is hugely disproportionate.

Reasons for child marriage range from economic to social. In many cases, girls are married off at an early age to reduce the... Continue Reading >>
Feb 2, 2013 KV Kiva HQ

Team message boards update!

For all you awesome lending team members, we've made a number of improvements to the team message boards:

1) Team captains can now post featured messages to communicate important events, goals, initiatives, etc. The featured message will be highlighted as the first post on message boards and will also appear at the beginning of nightly digest emails.

2) We’ve added a panel on the right side to show loans that this team has recently talked about...

Continue Reading >>

Pages