This article covers the emergence of micro-lending, those involved in micro-lending, and the good that this is doing all across the world.

Microfinance has become not only an emerging investment opportunity but also an effective tool to fight poverty. Microlending is a socially responsible investment and proving to be more beneficial than mere donations to charities. In small countries, entrepreneurs lack the credit and the capital to start a business on their own.  It is here that microlending firms such as Kiva.com and MicroPlace.com connect lenders and borrowers. Then, entrepreneurs are able to finance their business and provide a legitimate life for themselves.

Investors are able to make as little as a $25 investment through a microlending website linking them with a small business owner across the globe. The majority of these borrowers are women and this has proven to be less risky in investment situations. For Kiva.com, these loans do not have an interest rate, and although the lender is not making a profit on his or her investment, there is an unheard of 96% return rate on the investment. MicroPlace.com does have 2-6% interest rates charged to the borrowers, and although the investments are small, the returns are reliable and almost guaranteed. With microfinance agencies all over the world, investors are able to see directly where their money is going and know what it is doing when it gets there. Microlending agents meet with the borrowers to assist them in their small business development and progress of their business and to track their repayment to the lender.

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Small investment firms like Kiva.com and Microplace.com are not only providing a reliable investment opportunity for lenders but also giving entrepreneurs in underdeveloped countries the chance to bring themselves out of poverty. Is this the new face of global charity? These lending companies are living by the Chinese proverb “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime”. Instead of simply donating money to one of the many charities that provide food, water, and shelter to those in underdeveloped countries, the money a lender invests provides a way of life to the borrower. As a borrowers business continues to grow, as well as their credit, they are able to bring themselves out of poverty as opposed to struggling to survive by transient donations.