SAN FRANCISCO, CA -- 04/02/08 --
Just as YouTube has changed the way we
watch video and Wikipedia has changed the way we find information, Kiva.org
-- the world's first online person-to-person microlending platform -- is
changing the way we give back.
Since launching less than 2 1/2 years ago, Kiva.org has created a
microlending movement, whose members are sending $1 million to the
developing world every 12 days.
A loan is made on Kiva.org every 37 seconds.
-- $25 million has been loaned through Kiva.org (500% increase over 12
months, 36% increase over last quarter)
-- Each week over 100,000 people visit the Kiva.org website
-- Over 250,000 people from 70 countries on 7 continents have loaned
through Kiva.org
-- The average Kiva Lender has loaned a total of $93
-- Kiva Lenders have loaned to 39,000 entrepreneurs in 42 developing
countries
-- Since Kiva.org's second anniversary in October 2007, the monthly loan
volume has increased over 50%, the number of lenders has doubled, and the
number of microfinance partners has increased by 38%
-- Over $2.2 million in Kiva gift certificates were sold in the month of
December 2007 alone
-- Kiva.org's corporate partners now include Facebook, Google, YouTube,
and Yahoo!
-- Kiva.org was featured in Fortune, March 3, 2008, in an article titled
"The only nonprofit that matters."
Kiva.org is delivering what everyday people want in philanthropy:
-- Radical Transparency
-- High Engagement
-- Low cost
-- Smart and Sustainable Solutions
The result is a movement of people who have finally found a way to give
back that meets their expectations, and the numbers support projections of
a total loan portfolio of $1 billion within 10 years. President William J.
Clinton has said of Kiva, "I think the capacity to expand is infinite."
(Fortune, March 3, 2008.)
About Kiva.org
Kiva.org (www.kiva.org) is the world's first person-to-person microlending
website, empowering individuals to lend directly to an entrepreneur in the
developing world. Founded in 2005 by Matt and Jessica Flannery, Kiva.org's
mission is to connect people, through lending, to alleviate poverty.
Kiva.org currently connects lenders in more than 70 countries with
entrepreneurs in 42 developing countries, through 86 microfinance partners.
Kiva.org is headquartered in San Francisco.
CONTACT:
Fiona Ramsey
Kiva.org
(415) 358-7515
Email Contact
