The DOEN Foundation, an Amsterdam-based charitable organization which supports numerous microfinance and entrepreneurial projects, has approved a grant totaling USD 300,000 to Kiva Microfunds for further development of the organization, according to Jeroen Loots, Program Manager of Financial Sector Development at DOEN. Kiva is the first non-profit organization to allow microfinance institutions (MFIs) to raise interest-free capital directly from social investors via the Internet. Individual lenders can provide funding in increments as small as USD 25 and receive repayment of the principal at the end of the loan term, which typically runs between six and 12 months. Repayment rate on loans stands at 99.8 percent.
Since its founding in 2005, Kiva has helped over 50 MFIs in more than 30 countries raise debt capital and is currently the most frequented microfinance website. The average loan size requested by a micro-enterprise is USD 500. The average investor loans USD 25 to 100. Generally, enterprises receive full sponsorship within 1.5 days of posting their profiles on Kiva.org.
Kiva’s distinctive approach to microcredit has made it the object of press interest, including leading press sources such as Business Week, BBC News, NPR, the Village Voice, and the Wall Street Journal. The organization has also gained promotional support from notable philanthropic organizations such as the Clinton Global Initiative, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Microcredit Summit Campaign, and Unitus.
As of June 2007, Kiva had USD 8 million invested in microfinance providers all over the world. Kiva projects that its global microfinance investments will exceed USD 10 million by the end of this year and USD 50 million by June 2008.
This contribution is one of two grants recently approved by the DOEN Foundation to promote global microfinance efforts. The DOEN Foundation’s 2006 Annual Report indicates that the organization holds EUR 80.2 million (USD 113.4 million) in total assets. As of December 2005, DOEN had allocated EUR 43.2 million (USD 51.3 million) to microfinance investments, but planned to increase that amount by EUR 5.9 million (USD 7 million) by December 2006. Information for 2006 is not yet available on mixmarket.org
Additional Resources:
Van Eeghenstraat 70
1071 GK Amsterdam
The Netherlands
Kiva: About
MicroCapital.org article, August 8, 2006: “Kiva.org Gets the Press it Deserves for Microcredit Investment”:
MicroCapital.org article, July 19, 2007: “Peer to Peer (P2P) Microfinance Business of Kiva.org (Kiva) Funds over USD 8.9 Million Internationally for Micro Loans”
Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX Market): KIVA (Kiva Microfunds)
MIX Market: DOEN (DOEN Foundation)
Bloomberg.com: Currency Calculator
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