For small business owners out there looking for a business loan, the web site kiva.org brings good news. Taken from a story I originally heard last week on Marketplace—by they way, it’s a great show, if you don’t already listen to it—Kiva announced that it’s created a micro-loan program in the U.S.
By way of background, Kiva was started for the purpose of allowing individuals to make micro-loans to other individuals around the world, with the goal of using those loans to alleviate poverty. From their site:
Kiva is the world’s first person-to-person micro-lending website, empowering individuals to lend directly to unique entrepreneurs around the globe.
It really is a brilliant idea, and it even more brilliant now that they are allowing micro-loans to be made to U.S. entrepreneurs.
Kiva thoroughly lays out all of the details of its U.S. program here so I won’t repeat them, except to note that the micro-loans are made in $25 increments, and are intended for very small businesses. If you’re willing to post enough information about your business, a picture or two, and even a video, you might be lucky enough to find lenders through Kiva. Who knows, maybe someone famous like Arnold will even find your business worth funding.
Kiva’s new U.S. program makes me think of the site prosper.com, which is also based on the idea of consumer-to-consumer loans made through their site. As far as I know, prosper.com loans can be made for any purpose, while the Kiva loans are specifically for funding small businesses. Prosper loans also might have higher interest rates associated with them, although I’m not certain of that. For small business owners seeking additional capital, both sites are worth looking into further, especially since credit markets are so tight at the moment.
Tags: business loans, kiva.org, micro-lending
