I was so distressed when I read Peter's recent post about Kiva.org (A little less love for Kiva.org) because I am a lender and I've given Kiva gift certificates to people to get them involved in helping others start or run their small businesses. Peter wrote about how big business Kiva has become and how the very thing that drew most people to them (one-to-one lending) is the very thing they tinkered with to the dismay of many of their most loyal customers. The precarious position that Kiva has put itself in reminds me of how often some entrepreneurs foresake the core values that were the very reason for starting the business in order to grow and make more money.
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