About Kiva Lending Partners
Kiva is proud to partner with diverse impact-first organizations around the world. These Lending Partners raise funds by posting profiles, which represent loans made to their customers, to Kiva's website for fundraising. Lending Partners are extended credit lines that begin at $200K and extend up to $5M, depending on the size, risk, and impact profile of the lending partner.
Kiva also offers working capital loans to social enterprises of between $20K and $500K. Learn more about applying for a Kiva Social Enterprise loan here.
Crowdfunded capital from kiva.org is designed to support impact and innovation.
Kiva's terms match the terms offered to end borrowers. Maximum borrower-facing loan sizes and terms are assessed during the due diligence process.
Kiva lenders are repaid as borrowers repay, mitigating the financial impact of delayed repayment or default by Kiva Lending Partners’ borrowers. Additionally, Kiva lenders absorb currency losses for select currencies.
Kiva is the most visited microfinance website in the world, offering Lending Partners an opportunity to demonstrate and showcase their work.
Kiva charges most Lending Partners a fee in order to cover our costs. These fees are designed to be impact-first, affordable, and tailored to the terms and impact of the loan products being financed.
How to become a Kiva Lending Partner
Kiva partners with a range of organizations, including financial services providers (FSPs), social enterprises, and nonprofits, supporting them with access to crowdfunded capital raised on kiva.org.
Through a partnership with Kiva, impact-first organizations can raise flexible, impact-friendly senior debt to fund financial product offerings (primarily loans or asset financing) to its customers.
Partnership criteria
To be considered as a Kiva Lending Partner, your organization should:
Operate an existing lending program with a portfolio quality that is in line with market context and industry standards
Provide a specific proposal for using capital from Kiva to fund loan products that are affordable for clients and have a high social impact
Be able to post at least $300,000 US Dollars (USD) in loans in the first 12 months on kiva.org, with the capacity to grow in subsequent years
Have assets or operating revenues of at least $1 million USD
Be legally able to accept and repay debt denominated in USD
Be legally registered, licensed, and in good standing
Show commitment to following the Cerise+SPTF universal client protection standards
Important note: Kiva is currently unable to accept applications from organizations solely registered in the following countries: Afghanistan, Belarus, Burundi, Central African Republic, Cuba, EU member countries, Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Russia, Somalia (including Somaliland), South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, United Kingdom, Venezuela, Yemen. This list may change on an ongoing basis.
The communities we serve
Lending Partners are united in their dedication to serving vulnerable and excluded communities, including:
How to apply to be a Kiva Lending Partner
A Lending Partner inquiry form is available online in English, Spanish and French. You will receive a confirmation email upon completion of the form. Kiva's team reviews each application and responds via email. Response time varies depending on the volume of applications received, but can take 1-3 months. Partners invited to proceed with the due diligence process can expect to be asked to complete Kiva's impact assessment prior to a remote or onsite due diligence process conducted by a Kiva staff member. The depth and breadth of due diligence depends on the amount of funding requested. A Lending Partner can access additional funding as they use their credit line and establish a successful track record with Kiva. Kiva limits our exposure to 30% of a Lending Partner’s gross loan portfolio or total assets.
“Kiva's entrance into our portfolio helped us to attract additional funding from other international institutions which were hesitating... This was a very important thing for us.”
