All You Guys With More Money Than Brains!

[Cry Me A River]

This just struck me as really, really cool:

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Kiva.org is the world’s first peer-to-peer, distributed microloan website. A great idea where PayPal meets Gates Foundation. The site allows you to lend a small amount of money, say $25, to needy microenterprises in developing countries. You receive repayment at the end of the loan period (normally 6-12 months) without interest. If they default on the loan, your loan becomes a donation – though none of the businesses have defaulted yet. A great low-risk, high-reward idea.


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Linky

As someone whose been involved in a couple start-ups, I know how difficult obtaining finanacing can be even in North America, I can't imagine in the third world!

A quick Google search looks like it's legit, even if a lot of the site does read like those Nigerian emails...

A similar organisation is the Grameen Foundation though you don't get the same level of feedback.