Thanks for your comment. Yes the Kiva story has caused major tremors amongst lenders (I’ve been a lender since 2007). I’m slightly ambivalent about it believing we all have the choice to whom we lend. However, I am starting to see that widening the reach to developed nations where the capital amounts are much higher may cause some capital bleed as well as blurring the original focus.

Having said that there is competition in the market with organisations like United Prosperity and Wokai in China as well as others dotted around the world.

Kiva has had such a major impact that I’m loathe to be critical of it but let’s see how it develops. One suggestion I have is for them to split off the US into a separate platform. We shall see.

If you are on Twitter you may find this list on microfinance commentators and organisations useful.

http://www.socialearth.org/113-microfinance-tweeters-to-follow

I have been making micro-finance loans through http://www.kiva.org for a few months now but I have been re-evaluating my support as a result of a widening of lending at Kiva to include borowers in the First World. I have decided I need to support the micro-lending site itself, not just the borrowers, and to support the site I must be in agreement with the aims of the organisation.

I have joined http://www.unitedprosperity.org/ which provides loan guarantees to local banks rather than loans. The guarantee from an overseas lender is only required in case of a default, and this keeps the lending local and allows a credit history to be established.

It is a different way of doing things and allows micro-credit to farmers in India, a country with foreign exchange controls which prevent Kiva-style lending.