There are so many good causes on Kiva. I don’t have suggestions for any fund in particular - just a general note to say I think it’s cool to completely fund (or finish funding) an initiative as opposed to just giving a little bit to a ton of projects. That way you can make a more direct impact on specific individuals.
Great work Chris - -thanks.
I’m just getting involved with Kiva – inspired by this approach to uplifting each other.
Will get back here on which loans could be candidates.
(this is cross-posted from Erg forum, OP dated 10-2-2021)
Since 9-16-21 I have made 52 loans on the Kiva platform at a total cost of 1,301.97 as I decided to donate a small amount to Kiva so they can continue to facilitate borrowers in obtaining their goals through the Kiva platform the math is going to look a little strange.
This brings the donation’s to $1876.97 that were developed through the Ergo Raffle for the Cardano Community Kiva Initiative.
Owed $1.16 to fulfill my obligations, when I sat down to make this update I believed I had met my obligations, my calc’s were wrong so I will soon be making another loan to ensure all the fund’s gained through the raffle are distributed where they were meant to go.
*Note (edit): Final loan of $25 made on 10-5-2021, all ErgoRaffle proceeds have been lent out on Kiva.
Forward Strategy.
As I work on Ergo–Lend and a similiar solution on Cardano, my thoughts are that as these loans are repaid on Kiva I will transfer them to the blockchain solution I am so excited to see succeed, I will be seeking advice and feedback from the community on just how exactly to distribute these funds and the traceability of them as they were crowdsourced and will be moving from one platform to another.
-if- Ergo-Lend is not succesful than as these Kiva loans are repaid the funds will be reloaned to new borrowers on that platform.
I have payments being returned on Kiva now and at the same time I am anticipating being capable of using ErgoLend in the next 60 days, should I relend my Kiva credit or should I allow the repayment balance to grow and lend on ErgoLend?
My first loan on ErgoLend is likely be to a Cardano Enthusiast and contributor that is involved in the ABCD project in Nigeria and has partnered with the ErgoLend team to see its success as a microfinance blockchain solution that is multi-platform/crosschain lending solution to solve some of the problems in the world with microfinance that has truly been a hindrance in their country.
With this in mind please advise me on how to move forward, I would like to use the funds for ErgoLend as I have lately learned the average cost to borrowers on the Kiva platform is greater than 30% interest, and I believe the ErgoLend platform will allow for less of a burden on a borrower.
Not sure which platform is best but 30% sounds outrageous (especially when I thought loans on Kiva were interest free…).
I see this team writes about it in detail and it looks like Kiva disclose this but not 100% upfront about it -
In the end I guess it’s about trust, surprise surprise. I feel inclined not to finance the field partners, but that could be an ignorant attitude on my part.
One option is to use direct Kiva loans or similar where you find interest/profitability of lender is acceptable.
More to the point - I would say that I trust your discretion, and will be happy to learn your rationale as it unfolds. Picking a decentralized option may sound better on paper, but that could be just because we have less data there to judge.
In your specific suggestion it sounds like you have plenty of data about the venture - so again it comes down to the trust & faith you have in the project.
I would prefer to send my money where it would have the most impact - and honestly that’s very hard to predict or even quantify - so I try to do the best I can without spending too much energy on self inspection. At some point I find it becomes counter productive.
The ErgoLend project is getting close and with there being no objections I will plan to move the funds in my account from Kiva to the ErgoLend platform and will aim to fund Cardano Community-associated projects
@Eystein_Hansen I would like to discuss giving you a captain position on the Kiva team, would you be willing to take that position?
I think Kiva is still a great platform, and it also is a great place for people to contribute to changing the world by working in an environment they are familiar with, would be a shame if I get hit by a bus or something and there is no other Captain of the team.
I think new and more efficient platforms such as ergolend potentially will be more efficient than Kiva and would like to support such efforts. For the time beeing Kiva and such platforms seem to have a role to play as it lowers barrierer to entry.
I will consider your offer Chris as the landing team for Cardano was one of the reasons I got inspired to contribute myself. Feel free to DM me what is expect in commitments and work in new role so I can make a better assesment if I should say yes.
In general I am inclined to accept as I am honored to be part of the team. Also Chris please dont get hit by any bussen I look forward to see what you create with Ergolend.
Please welcome @Eystein_Hansen and @adatainment to the role of Team Captain for our Kiva Lending Team.
The addition of these members to the position will ensure the team remains online and available to others that would like to join us in making an impact in the world where it matters.
Couldn’t hope for a better addition to the team leadership than @adatainment & @Eystein_Hansen !
You are appreciated and @Chris_Ray too of course .
I think we’ll need a new name soon (if we’re going to go beyond Kiva as a group).
The bootstrapping phase of Ergolend loans has begun, this phase will refine the social aspects surrounding how to use the social channels to get a loan funded and additionally how a philanthropist can be a sponsor for borrowers in a P2P environment, I am sure there are also other things to learn as we push forward, this phase completes the Kiva initiative that was in November of '21 Kiva Update for funds contributed through the Raffle - #4 by Haskell_plus
I have created a reddit post inviting others to join us and I am open to questions, critique, suggestions, assistance, or what have you - We continue forward
Some months ago I found myself locked out of my Kiva account.
I was wondering - is this some mysterious glitch or are others experiencing it too and something more sinister may be going on.
What do I mean by locked out?
I mean my password did not work, but more importantly, the “password reset” button/email does not work. I have searched spam etc. but haven’t reached out to their support yet (they seem to have only a general contact form, and I imagine their support is not AAA).Lastly, I’ve tried using the password reset button several times over the course of several months.
What say you? Can you password reset without a hitch? Cheers
I look forward to see what you create with Ergolend.
and 
.
(if we’re going to go beyond Kiva as a group).
