Kiva Raises Over $62 Million
By Anna Johnson on March 12th, 2009We proudly lend money to entrepreneurs from poor countries via Kiva.org. Well, what a joy it was to see that in its 41 months (nearly 3.5 years) of life, the micro-lending organization has raised over $62 million for its entrepreneurs.
To be precise, Kiva’s March newsletter said that Kiva has, to date, raised $62,696,435 million from 457,405 Kiva lenders. It has funded 145,139 entrepreneurs from 159 countries who, collectively, have achieved a 97 percent repayment rate.
Impressive stuff.
I know times are tough for many people in ‘first’ world countries right now. It has led me to think about how our company can help entrepreneurs closer to home. While $50 can be all it takes to make a meaningful difference to an entrepeneur in Africa, it won’t go a long way for someone in the U.S. or Australia.
But what do aspiring entrepreneurs really need to get their businesses off and running and making profits? Would more initiatives such as Y Combinator, TechStars and similar ‘start-up seed funding + education’ programs do the trick?
The only problem with those is they are firmly aimed at fast growing and high-growth potential (largely) technology companies.
There’s good reason for that.
The opportunity cost of investing in businesses with less lofty ambitions is generally perceived as being too high. And yet the probability of GETTING a return from other kinds of businesses can be higher.
Hmmm… much to think about…
In the meantime, keep up the good work Kiva!
