When you lend to Kiva, you’re lending to a microfinance institution. Nothing wrong with that… but don’t think you have control over where the money is going.

There are several million individuals and businesses in the US with as good a right to a loan as those shown already. And surely Canada, Japan and Germany have poor people too?

This is not US bashing. The issue is allowing those who want twenty times more from KIVA to compete with people who get a boost in income from a $200 loan.

I say Kiva is for Microfinance.

While I agree that opening things to the US carries a *risk* of loss of focus, the people in charge have said loud and clear that they are monitoring closely to make sure the US loans do not detract from the growth in lending to other countries.

This is a pilot program. They are finding out if they can lend all the way up the spectrum of poverty. If they can’t, they’ll scale back.

MY TAKE ON IT: I’m glad Kiva opened it up to US loans, whether or not they keep them in the long-term. It’s opening up the conversation on what poverty means, and pulling up the rug to sweep out a lot of unexamined bigotry and “othering.” To quote Premal, “There is no them.”

Having said that, the guy who’s kicking up a fuss in a team I’m in has only loaned twice.

I probably won’t loan to US borrowers, but that’s entirely my choice, and I’m fine with the choice being there and other people choosing otherwise.

There are a few players (mostly offline) in the “lending to US businesses” space… and they are doing a fantastic job (not as well publicized of course).

Only 1 in 8 of those people complaining has even lent. pathetic. personally I have lent more than the entire group.

lets beat something really small up and make a story of it – pathetic journalism thats even worse than the story

Why do I lend (occasionally) to US entrepreneurs? I haven’t really heard this argument put forth yet. I like the loans to day cares and other small businesses which provide services or employment to people who are marginalized or in poverty. As an example, a day care provider I helped fund offers child care to her Hispanic community, and lowers her rate for parents who can’t afford to pay more. She impacts her community, helping lift others out of poverty, because they can now afford to work and still have affordable child care. I think that fits right in with Kiva’s mission and doesn’t dilute the brand at all.

The architect loan was an anomaly, but we shouldn’t presume to know the whole story behind that loan either. I’ve loaned to professionals in other countries; not knowing his circumstances, I don’t mind him being listed on Kiva. I exercised my right to choose, and chose to fund someone else.

For me, the harsh tirades from the this team have done more to undermine the core of what makes Kiva so special. Never heard so much ugly hate talk from a bunch of philanthropists.

There’s no point in objecting as if Kiva is somehow diverting cash from less developed countries. People can go on the site and direct what is after all their own money anywhere they want.

What people appear to be objecting to is losing the opportunity to display their own virtue as a ‘Kiva lender’. Opening up lending to US entrepreneurs dilutes the ‘vanity-bling’ nature of the Kiva brand.

This is exactly as though Toyota were to suddenly start selling a version of the Prius with a gasoline engine that looked exactly the same as the hybrid – all the existing Prius owners who had bought the car as a means to broadcast their virtue (just about all of them, in my experience) would instantly feel their investment had been seriously devalued by Toyota, because suddenly being seen driving a Prius would say nothing at all about their environmental credentials. Boy, would they be mad!

The objectors may have a point if, as with the Prius, the status-enhancement component is much or even most of the brand’s value-added to its customers (who as in every business, are at the end of the day the people forking over the cash).

Note that if you look at the team captain’s page (tom), you’ll see that he’s made over 200 loans on Kiva, so there’s no way the total loans for all members in the group is under 60!

The team supports Kiva in its effort to support loans in all countries including the US. We think the people lending the money should decide where to send it!

Please join our team and lend some money with the Happy Kiva Lenders!