Traditional banks won’t lend to refugees because they’re perceived as too risky. But Kiva’s refugee portfolio breaks that stereotype - we lend to refugees with a repayment rate above 95%.
Kiva began crowdfunding loans to refugees in 2016. Since then, lenders on our platform have contributed $12.5 million in loans to over 15,000 refugees across the globe. But we’re just getting started.
Besides our crowdfunding platform, we are working on two new initiatives that will catalyze our impact.
"We want to share what we're doing in refugee lending -- why, how and what's next,” said Goldie Chow, Director of Impact at Kiva. “Doing something new means it's even more important to be openly sharing data, stories and learnings."
Kiva just launched its first-ever Refugee Impact Site to demonstrate our unique approach to refugee lending, report on results and learnings and share our plans to grow our impact in the refugee lending space. But it’s not just numbers - it also features photos, stories and video interviews with refugees who have rebuilt their lives with Kiva loans.
We won’t just tell you about the impact we’re making, we’ll show you. Check out our new Refugee Impact Site here.
About the author
Channing Fisher.
Channing first witnessed the ability of entrepreneurship to empower people while studying Spanish in Guatemala. Throughout college, she became interested in microfinance while working in business development in the Netherlands and studying the effects of tourism on Caribbean economies. After graduating from Principia College in 2018 with degrees in Political Science and Business, she began work for a Santa Barbara-based nonprofit and later found Kiva. She's passionate about communicating and sharing the work done at Kiva and elsewhere in the international development space.