1
US Trustee Introduction
Spring, 2013
Kiva is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, headquartered in San
Francisco, with a mission to connect people through lending to
alleviate poverty. Leveraging the Internet and a worldwide
network of microfinance institutions, Kiva lets individuals lend
as little as $25 to help create opportunity around the world.
What is Kiva?
How does Kiva work?
The borrower meets
with the Field Partner
and requests a loan.
1
The Field Partner
disburses a loan to
the borrower.
2
The Field Partner uploads
the loan request to Kiva, it's
reviewed by a team and
then published on Kiva.org
3
Kiva lenders fund the
loan request, and
Kiva sends the funds
to the Field Partner.
4
The borrower makes repayments
and the Field Partner sends funds
owed to Kiva. Kiva repays lenders.
5
The lenders can make
another loan, donate to Kiva,
or withdraw the money.
6
How does Kiva make money?
• Tip from lenders
• Grants
• Donations
Because of this Kiva does
not need to charge interest
or fees to borrowers or
participating organizations
BUT WHAT ABOUT IN THE DEVELOPED WORLD?
Incredibly successful in the developing world,
Specifically, what about in the United States?
25 million microenterprises exist
in the United States
but only 18,000 microfinance loans were made in
America in 20101
1http://fieldus.org/publications/2011CensusFacts.pdf
The statistic
“Only 2% of potential U.S. microfinance customers are
being served, compared to 17% in the developing world”2
2http://www.tsys.com/Downloads/upload/fall-ngenuity-journal-2012.pdf
Lack of small business lending
And it’s been getting worse…
Feb 2013
Small business loans3 2008 2011 Delta
$1m or less $712b $607b -15%
$100k or less $170b $140b -18%
3 http://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/sbl_11study%20FINAL.pdf
And loans less than $50k are virtually non-existent
MFIs (aka Field Partners) are too few and far
between, and too traditional, in the United States
and Trustees
Lenders Entrepreneur
What do the loans look like?
o 0% interest rate
o First loan can be up to $5k;
subsequent loans up to $50k
o Up to 24 months repayment term
o Grace periods available for
startups and agricultural
businesses
o Repayments made in regular
weekly or monthly installments
o Disbursals and repayments made
electronically via Paypal
o Posted and ‘crowd-funded’ online
What are the criteria for the loans?
Minimum requirements:
• The borrower's debt-to-income
ratio (DTI) must be less than
35%
• The borrower cannot have
past-due debt
• The borrower cannot currently
be in foreclosure or bankruptcy
• The borrower's annual income
must be less than $100,000
• The borrower must have both
PayPal and Facebook
accounts
Character assessment:
• Do you deeply trust that the
borrower is the kind of person
who will commit to repaying
their loan?
• Do they have a viable business
or business plan?
• Do you know what they will
use the loan for and how it will
impact their business?
• Will this loan have a positive
social impact?
• Do they meet the minimum
requirements for a Kiva Zip
loan?
Lenders Trustees Entrepreneurs
Trustees
• source Kiva Zip
borrowers
• review their business and
personal finances
• vouch for their character
• publicly endorse them on
the Kiva Zip website
Trustees Continued
• have no financial liability
for the loans, but their
reputation is tied to the
repayment rate of the
borrowers they endorse.
• can be either individuals
or organizations.
Types of trustees
Organizational
• provide support, training, or
assistance for the business
• help the entrepreneur develop
their business plan or provide
ongoing support for existing
business
• allow the borrower to start with
a 0% interest loan up to $5,000
that is paid back between 10
and 24 months.
Individual
• typically a close friend, mentor,
or advisor
• must have known the
entrepreneur for over six
months and have a good
understanding of the business
• allow the borrower to start with
a 0% interest loan up to $2,500
that is paid back between 3
and 12 months
Types of trustees Continued...
A few examples:
• Community Development Corporations
• Community Development Financial Institutions
• Economic Development Corporations
• Local Businesses
• Neighborhood Associations
• Nonprofits
• Religious Groups
• SCORE Advisors
• Small Business Development Centers
• Startup Incubators and Accelerators
• Student Groups and College Professors
• Etcetera
The ask
• Kiva Zip is still in the early
(Alpha) stage of development.
• Because of this, there is no
cost and minimal
requirements to join
• We do ask for a nominal time
commitment for the following
A bit about who you are, why you are interested in
Kiva Zip, and what due diligence you plan to conduct Trustee Profile
+ an endorsement
• The four questions the
trustee answers about the
borrower on the Kiva Zip
website.
• The endorsement builds
the borrower’s credibility
and helps lenders decide
whether or not to make a
loan.
The in-depth Kiva Zip loan process
Trustee
application
Trustee
endorsement
Loan
application
Trustee
review
1 2 3 4
Trustee fills out
an application
form, explaining
why they want
to be a trustee
This is a one-
time, online
form, and takes
only about 30
minutes to
complete
For every
borrower they
endorse, a
trustee writes a
‘trustee
endorsement’
An endorse-
ment is only a
few questions
long and takes
only about 10
minutes to
complete
When the trustee
has submitted the
endorsement, the
borrower
completes a ‘loan
application’
This is a longer
application form,
and can take a
couple of hours to
fill out. Again, it is
all online to make
life easier!
Once the loan
application is
submitted, the
trustee gets a
chance to re-
view the loan
The trustee
can approve it
if they are
happy with it,
or suggest
changes if
they prefer
Finally, the Kiva
Zip team will
review the loan,
before posting it
to the website to
begin
fundraising
From there,
most loans take
about 3-4
weeks to fully
fund
Kiva Zip
team review
5
Why are borrowers so excited about Kiva Zip?
• Ability to access capital
• Zero interest or fees
• Easy, online application
• Flexible loan terms
• Building of community
Why are lenders so excited about Kiva Zip?
• Easy, one-click lending
on the Kiva Zip website
• Loans as small as $25,
and lenders can still get
their money back as
borrowers repay
• Cultivation of community,
both on the other side of
the globe and down the
street
Why are trustees so excited about Kiva Zip?
• Empower clients
• Engage community
• Promote through Kiva
• Fundraise via impact
Why are we so excited about Kiva Zip?
• Cultivation of community
through ‘conversations’
• Radical expansion of
access to capital
• Development and
leveraging of trust
networks
Early Returns
• Over 200 loans posted on the Kiva
Zip website
• Over 120 trustees in 35 states
• About a third of loans to startups
• 86% repayment rate
• Building connections and
community between and among
our borrowers and our lenders
Theresa Wilson
theresa.wilson@fellows.kiva.org
(330) 814-5069
Join the Kiva Zip
Community today!

Kiva Zip Information

  • 1.
  • 2.
    Kiva is a501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, headquartered in San Francisco, with a mission to connect people through lending to alleviate poverty. Leveraging the Internet and a worldwide network of microfinance institutions, Kiva lets individuals lend as little as $25 to help create opportunity around the world. What is Kiva?
  • 3.
    How does Kivawork? The borrower meets with the Field Partner and requests a loan. 1 The Field Partner disburses a loan to the borrower. 2 The Field Partner uploads the loan request to Kiva, it's reviewed by a team and then published on Kiva.org 3 Kiva lenders fund the loan request, and Kiva sends the funds to the Field Partner. 4 The borrower makes repayments and the Field Partner sends funds owed to Kiva. Kiva repays lenders. 5 The lenders can make another loan, donate to Kiva, or withdraw the money. 6
  • 4.
    How does Kivamake money? • Tip from lenders • Grants • Donations Because of this Kiva does not need to charge interest or fees to borrowers or participating organizations
  • 5.
    BUT WHAT ABOUTIN THE DEVELOPED WORLD? Incredibly successful in the developing world,
  • 6.
    Specifically, what aboutin the United States?
  • 7.
    25 million microenterprisesexist in the United States but only 18,000 microfinance loans were made in America in 20101 1http://fieldus.org/publications/2011CensusFacts.pdf
  • 8.
    The statistic “Only 2%of potential U.S. microfinance customers are being served, compared to 17% in the developing world”2 2http://www.tsys.com/Downloads/upload/fall-ngenuity-journal-2012.pdf
  • 9.
    Lack of smallbusiness lending And it’s been getting worse… Feb 2013 Small business loans3 2008 2011 Delta $1m or less $712b $607b -15% $100k or less $170b $140b -18% 3 http://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/sbl_11study%20FINAL.pdf And loans less than $50k are virtually non-existent
  • 11.
    MFIs (aka FieldPartners) are too few and far between, and too traditional, in the United States
  • 12.
  • 13.
  • 14.
    What do theloans look like? o 0% interest rate o First loan can be up to $5k; subsequent loans up to $50k o Up to 24 months repayment term o Grace periods available for startups and agricultural businesses o Repayments made in regular weekly or monthly installments o Disbursals and repayments made electronically via Paypal o Posted and ‘crowd-funded’ online
  • 15.
    What are thecriteria for the loans? Minimum requirements: • The borrower's debt-to-income ratio (DTI) must be less than 35% • The borrower cannot have past-due debt • The borrower cannot currently be in foreclosure or bankruptcy • The borrower's annual income must be less than $100,000 • The borrower must have both PayPal and Facebook accounts Character assessment: • Do you deeply trust that the borrower is the kind of person who will commit to repaying their loan? • Do they have a viable business or business plan? • Do you know what they will use the loan for and how it will impact their business? • Will this loan have a positive social impact? • Do they meet the minimum requirements for a Kiva Zip loan?
  • 16.
  • 17.
    Trustees • source KivaZip borrowers • review their business and personal finances • vouch for their character • publicly endorse them on the Kiva Zip website
  • 18.
    Trustees Continued • haveno financial liability for the loans, but their reputation is tied to the repayment rate of the borrowers they endorse. • can be either individuals or organizations.
  • 19.
    Types of trustees Organizational •provide support, training, or assistance for the business • help the entrepreneur develop their business plan or provide ongoing support for existing business • allow the borrower to start with a 0% interest loan up to $5,000 that is paid back between 10 and 24 months. Individual • typically a close friend, mentor, or advisor • must have known the entrepreneur for over six months and have a good understanding of the business • allow the borrower to start with a 0% interest loan up to $2,500 that is paid back between 3 and 12 months
  • 20.
    Types of trusteesContinued... A few examples: • Community Development Corporations • Community Development Financial Institutions • Economic Development Corporations • Local Businesses • Neighborhood Associations • Nonprofits • Religious Groups • SCORE Advisors • Small Business Development Centers • Startup Incubators and Accelerators • Student Groups and College Professors • Etcetera
  • 21.
    The ask • KivaZip is still in the early (Alpha) stage of development. • Because of this, there is no cost and minimal requirements to join • We do ask for a nominal time commitment for the following
  • 22.
    A bit aboutwho you are, why you are interested in Kiva Zip, and what due diligence you plan to conduct Trustee Profile
  • 23.
    + an endorsement •The four questions the trustee answers about the borrower on the Kiva Zip website. • The endorsement builds the borrower’s credibility and helps lenders decide whether or not to make a loan.
  • 24.
    The in-depth KivaZip loan process Trustee application Trustee endorsement Loan application Trustee review 1 2 3 4 Trustee fills out an application form, explaining why they want to be a trustee This is a one- time, online form, and takes only about 30 minutes to complete For every borrower they endorse, a trustee writes a ‘trustee endorsement’ An endorse- ment is only a few questions long and takes only about 10 minutes to complete When the trustee has submitted the endorsement, the borrower completes a ‘loan application’ This is a longer application form, and can take a couple of hours to fill out. Again, it is all online to make life easier! Once the loan application is submitted, the trustee gets a chance to re- view the loan The trustee can approve it if they are happy with it, or suggest changes if they prefer Finally, the Kiva Zip team will review the loan, before posting it to the website to begin fundraising From there, most loans take about 3-4 weeks to fully fund Kiva Zip team review 5
  • 25.
    Why are borrowersso excited about Kiva Zip? • Ability to access capital • Zero interest or fees • Easy, online application • Flexible loan terms • Building of community
  • 26.
    Why are lendersso excited about Kiva Zip? • Easy, one-click lending on the Kiva Zip website • Loans as small as $25, and lenders can still get their money back as borrowers repay • Cultivation of community, both on the other side of the globe and down the street
  • 27.
    Why are trusteesso excited about Kiva Zip? • Empower clients • Engage community • Promote through Kiva • Fundraise via impact
  • 28.
    Why are weso excited about Kiva Zip? • Cultivation of community through ‘conversations’ • Radical expansion of access to capital • Development and leveraging of trust networks
  • 29.
    Early Returns • Over200 loans posted on the Kiva Zip website • Over 120 trustees in 35 states • About a third of loans to startups • 86% repayment rate • Building connections and community between and among our borrowers and our lenders
  • 30.