Kiva

by Kiva.org

Kiva is a non profit that is attempting to enable access to lending by crowd funding loans.

Snapshot
Manufacturing & delivery
Performance & use
Research & standards
Feedback

Product description Brand name and product description

Kiva provides micro-loans directly or through partners to enable low income individuals access to capital that they would not otherwise have.

Kiva is a 501(c)3 U.S. nonprofit

Target region(s) Target region for distribution/implementation (listed by country if specified)

Global

Distributors/implementing organizations Organization(s) distributing/deploying this product directly to communities/individuals?"

– Kiva

– Field Partners

Market suggested retail price Price per unit or service price per usage/terms (USD). Subsidies noted.

Kiva does not charge interest on any of it’s loans. Their operations are entirely funded by donation.

Field Partners do charge interest to cover the cost of operations, but Kiva limits the amount of interest that they can charge.

Competitive landscape Similar products available on the market. May not be a comprehensive listing.

– Kickstarter

– Indiegogo

– GoFundMe

SDG targeted United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) targeted with this product/application/service

Goal 1: poverty reduction

Goal 10: reduced Inequalities

Target user(s) Target user/consumer base (country, income segment)

Underserved populations without access to banking or capital.

Manufacturing/building method(s) Detail regarding solution production or construction method (instructions, mass production capacity, custom made,etc...)

A large amount of Kiva is open source and is published on GitHub.

They also have a blog for their build/engineering team.

Product Intellectual Property Open source/IP protected (note patent)/trade secret/other?

Other, Kiva releases a large amount of their code base as open source.

User Provision Model Where can the product be purchased/acquired by end users?

Borrower’s can sign up directly on Kiva’s site or through field partners in their local region.

Lender’s can find a project or borrower and sign up on the Kiva site.

Distribution to date Number of units that have been deployed, downloads or users to date

From their impact page:

– 2.9 million borrowers

– 1.7 million lenders

Fields marked are sourced values that have been evaluated by the manufacturer or a third party, all others are design specifications.

Telecommunication service required

Connectivity requirement for the product/service to work (Mobile Internet, SMS, voice, Fixed Internet, Wi-Fi, etc)

Mobile or fixed internet

Level of connection service needed

Mobile data coverage required for the product/service to work (2G, 3G, 4G, LTE, broadband, dial-up, other [specify])

2G required

Device(s) required

Device(s) type required for the product/service to work. (smartphone ,feature phone, computer, tablet, other [specify])

Smartphone, computer, or tablet

Permanent network connectivity required (Y/N)

Connectivity requirement for the product/service to work. Some apps/services can work offline (If No [specify] or Other [specify])

Additonal features required

Device features required for the product/service to work. (Bluethooth, Wifi, camera, IVR, GPS, Accelerometers/Motion sensors, physiologic biosensors, biometric identifiers, SIM, Memory card (e.g microSD), other [specify])

None

Two way communication (Y/N)

Is the product/service able to receive and send back information to the user?

Yes

Usage rate (%)

Usage rate for the app/voice-SMS service – to be determined if the manufacturers are willing to share this number.

97.0%

Literacy support (Y(specify) / N)

Support according to the literacy level required from the user. If no, the user is intended to be literateDisplay order

Languages available (list)

English, French, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish

Operating system and version (Android, IOs, Windows, or other [specify])

Operating System required and Software version

This is a web application, so any OS that supports a modern browser.

Open source data (Y /N/ Other)

Is the data from this application available? If so list,(API access, full download, other)

Yes, Data exports or API access

Data import/export formats

Supported formats (JSON, XLS, CSV, XML, other)

JSON or CSV

Power requirements

Power supply required for the product/service to work. (Uninterrupted power supply (UPS), ocassional power supply [minimum time required], other)

Occasional power required by end user

eFinance application

Specify the application that serves financial inclusion (Mobile money, insurance, loans, microfinance/micro lending, crowd funding, aid distribution, cash payment, etc)

Micro-finance/micro lending and crowd funding

Design specifications Component and Operation overview including power, portability, facility requirements, preventative maintenance and user training requirements

Kiva attempts to be very transparent. They have a detailed page on the loan process as well as their financials.

Their technology platform is a combination of open source and licensed software. Siftery has detailed information about the technology they utilize.

They publish detailed information on their API and how to integrate it into your application.

Kiva labs attempts solve global issues by funding risky ideas to tackle issues that are impacting undeserved populations.

Product schematics Design and assembly illustrations

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Technical support Technical support provided by

Technical support is provided by Kiva.

Replacement components Availability of replacement components (in-country, by order,...)

N/A

Lifecycle Disposal and warranty

N/A

Manufacturer specified performance targets Designer / Manufacturer specified targets

From Kiva’s about page:

“Kiva is an international nonprofit, founded in 2005 and based in San Francisco, with a mission to connect people through lending to alleviate poverty. We celebrate and support people looking to create a better future for themselves, their families and their communities.”

Vetted performance Findings of manufacturer evaluations or independent testing centers

From Kiva’s impact page:

– $1 billion dollars in loans

– 2.5 million borrowers

– 1.6 million lenders

– 84 countries

– 81% of borrowers are women

Testing organizations Independent lab, academic research centers, etc.

– Kiva

– Field Partners

Safety Potential hazards / risks related to operation of this product

Not applicable

Complementary technical systems Performance of this product is improved with another technology (eg. Cookstoves and Wind-blocking skirts)

Statistical analysis software (Stata, R, etc.)

Academic research Academic research related to the product (e.g. published papers in peer-reviewed journals)

Gajjala V, Gajjala R, Birzescu A, Anarbaeva S. Microfinance in online space: a visual analysis of kiva.org. Development in Practice. 2011;21(6):880–893.
Choo J, Lee C, Lee D, Zha H, Park H. Understanding and promoting micro-finance activities in Kiva.org. Proceedings of the 7th ACM international conference on Web search and data mining – WSDM 14. 2014.
Liu Y, Chen R, Chen Y, Mei Q, Salib S. “I loan because…”. Proceedings of the fifth ACM international conference on Web search and data mining – WSDM 12. 2012.
Hartley SE. Kiva.org: Crowd-Sourced Microfinance and Cooperation in Group Lending. SSRN Electronic Journal. 2010.
Megan Moodie, Microfinance and the Gender of Risk: The Case of Kiva.org, Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society 38, no. 2 (Winter 2013): 279-302.
Schwittay AF. Making Poverty Into A Financial Problem: From Global Poverty Lines To Kiva.org. Journal of International Development. 2013;26(4):508–519.

Compliance with regulations Product certifications and standards referenced by designer/manufacturer

According to their Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, Kiva is in compliance with all local laws and regulations.

Evaluation methods Evaluation methods/protocols/guidelines referenced by designer or manufacturer.

Field trials

Other information

– Kiva Annual Report 2015

– Kiva 101 presentation

– Charity Navigator – Kiva review

In context photographs (0)

You can use the form below to contribute a photo of this product.

In context files & documents (0)

Feedback from users, customers & distributors

Please let us know your experience in using this product through comments below.

Snapshot

Product description Brand name and product description

Kiva provides micro-loans directly or through partners to enable low income individuals access to capital that they would not otherwise have.

Kiva is a 501(c)3 U.S. nonprofit

Target region(s) Target region for distribution/implementation (listed by country if specified)

Global

Distributors/implementing organizations Organization(s) distributing/deploying this product directly to communities/individuals?"

– Kiva

– Field Partners

Market suggested retail price Price per unit or service price per usage/terms (USD). Subsidies noted.

Kiva does not charge interest on any of it’s loans. Their operations are entirely funded by donation.

Field Partners do charge interest to cover the cost of operations, but Kiva limits the amount of interest that they can charge.

Competitive landscape Similar products available on the market. May not be a comprehensive listing.

– Kickstarter

– Indiegogo

– GoFundMe

SDG targeted United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) targeted with this product/application/service

Goal 1: poverty reduction

Goal 10: reduced Inequalities

Target user(s) Target user/consumer base (country, income segment)

Underserved populations without access to banking or capital.

Manufacturing & delivery

Manufacturing/building method(s) Detail regarding solution production or construction method (instructions, mass production capacity, custom made,etc...)

A large amount of Kiva is open source and is published on GitHub.

They also have a blog for their build/engineering team.

Product Intellectual Property Open source/IP protected (note patent)/trade secret/other?

Other, Kiva releases a large amount of their code base as open source.

User Provision Model Where can the product be purchased/acquired by end users?

Borrower’s can sign up directly on Kiva’s site or through field partners in their local region.

Lender’s can find a project or borrower and sign up on the Kiva site.

Distribution to date Number of units that have been deployed, downloads or users to date

From their impact page:

– 2.9 million borrowers

– 1.7 million lenders

Performance & use

Fields marked are sourced values that have been evaluated by the manufacturer or a third party, all others are design specifications.

Telecommunication service required

Connectivity requirement for the product/service to work (Mobile Internet, SMS, voice, Fixed Internet, Wi-Fi, etc)

Mobile or fixed internet

Level of connection service needed

Mobile data coverage required for the product/service to work (2G, 3G, 4G, LTE, broadband, dial-up, other [specify])

2G required

Device(s) required

Device(s) type required for the product/service to work. (smartphone ,feature phone, computer, tablet, other [specify])

Smartphone, computer, or tablet

Permanent network connectivity required (Y/N)

Connectivity requirement for the product/service to work. Some apps/services can work offline (If No [specify] or Other [specify])

Additonal features required

None

Two way communication (Y/N)

Is the product/service able to receive and send back information to the user?

Yes

Usage rate (%)

Usage rate for the app/voice-SMS service – to be determined if the manufacturers are willing to share this number.

97.0%

Literacy support (Y(specify) / N)

Support according to the literacy level required from the user. If no, the user is intended to be literateDisplay order

Languages available (list)

English, French, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish

Operating system and version (Android, IOs, Windows, or other [specify])

Operating System required and Software version

This is a web application, so any OS that supports a modern browser.

Open source data (Y /N/ Other)

Is the data from this application available? If so list,(API access, full download, other)

Yes, Data exports or API access

Data import/export formats

Supported formats (JSON, XLS, CSV, XML, other)

JSON or CSV

Power requirements

Power supply required for the product/service to work. (Uninterrupted power supply (UPS), ocassional power supply [minimum time required], other)

Occasional power required by end user

eFinance application

Specify the application that serves financial inclusion (Mobile money, insurance, loans, microfinance/micro lending, crowd funding, aid distribution, cash payment, etc)

Micro-finance/micro lending and crowd funding

Design specifications Component and Operation overview including power, portability, facility requirements, preventative maintenance and user training requirements

Kiva attempts to be very transparent. They have a detailed page on the loan process as well as their financials.

Their technology platform is a combination of open source and licensed software. Siftery has detailed information about the technology they utilize.

They publish detailed information on their API and how to integrate it into your application.

Kiva labs attempts solve global issues by funding risky ideas to tackle issues that are impacting undeserved populations.

Product schematics Design and assembly illustrations

undefined

Technical support Technical support provided by

Technical support is provided by Kiva.

Replacement components Availability of replacement components (in-country, by order,...)

N/A

Lifecycle Disposal and warranty

N/A

Manufacturer specified performance targets Designer / Manufacturer specified targets

From Kiva’s about page:

Vetted performance Findings of manufacturer evaluations or independent testing centers

From Kiva’s impact page:

– $1 billion dollars in loans

– 2.5 million borrowers

– 1.6 million lenders

– 84 countries

– 81% of borrowers are women

Testing organizations Independent lab, academic research centers, etc.

– Kiva

– Field Partners

Safety Potential hazards / risks related to operation of this product

Not applicable

Complementary technical systems Performance of this product is improved with another technology (eg. Cookstoves and Wind-blocking skirts)

Statistical analysis software (Stata, R, etc.)

Research & standards

Academic research Academic research related to the product (e.g. published papers in peer-reviewed journals)

Gajjala V, Gajjala R, Birzescu A, Anarbaeva S. Microfinance in online space: a visual analysis of kiva.org. Development in Practice. 2011;21(6):880–893.
Choo J, Lee C, Lee D, Zha H, Park H. Understanding and promoting micro-finance activities in Kiva.org. Proceedings of the 7th ACM international conference on Web search and data mining – WSDM 14. 2014.
Liu Y, Chen R, Chen Y, Mei Q, Salib S. “I loan because…”. Proceedings of the fifth ACM international conference on Web search and data mining – WSDM 12. 2012.
Hartley SE. Kiva.org: Crowd-Sourced Microfinance and Cooperation in Group Lending. SSRN Electronic Journal. 2010.
Megan Moodie, Microfinance and the Gender of Risk: The Case of Kiva.org, Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society 38, no. 2 (Winter 2013): 279-302.
Schwittay AF. Making Poverty Into A Financial Problem: From Global Poverty Lines To Kiva.org. Journal of International Development. 2013;26(4):508–519.

Compliance with regulations Product certifications and standards referenced by designer/manufacturer

According to their Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, Kiva is in compliance with all local laws and regulations.

Evaluation methods Evaluation methods/protocols/guidelines referenced by designer or manufacturer.

Field trials

Other information

– Kiva Annual Report 2015

– Kiva 101 presentation

– Charity Navigator – Kiva review

Feedback

In context photographs (0)

You can use the form below to contribute a photo of this product.

In context files & documents (0)

Feedback from users, customers & distributors

Please let us know your experience in using this product through comments below.

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Kiva

by Kiva.org

In context photographs (0)

In context files & documents (0)

Feedback from users, customers & distributors