HOW TO WORK WITH KIVA?

What is the benefit of being a Trustee?

As a Trustee, your organization has a microlending tool at your disposal that allows you to...

1. Invest in your community: By helping entrepreneurs gain access to funding to start or grow a business, you have the chance to make an integral impact in your community.

2. Track your impact over time: Trustees can track and share data on the loans they endorse to communicate their impact to funders and raise grant funding.

3. Increase the exposure of your organization: Your Trustee profile page publicly showcases your organization and impact to date and is visible to Kiva’s more than 1.6 million lenders around the world.

4. Build local networks: Trustees can further rally support for local businesses through the Kiva platform by establishing a local lending team.

5. Serve as business proof for your borrowers: Applicants with a Trustee endorsement can use that endorsement as an official business proof on their application (in lieu of a government-issued business proof).

What are the responsibilities of being a Trustee?

1. Identify: Reach out to businesses and entrepreneurs in your network who would benefit from a Kiva loan.

2. Evaluate: Endorse borrowers based on your understanding of their business and potential impact of Kiva loan.

3. Support: Set expectations with borrowers for the review criteria and fundraising timeline and support them through the application process and crowdfunding campaign as necessary.

4. Monitor: Trustees have no financial or legal liability for their endorsed borrowers’ repayment, but your public profile and prioritization by Kiva HQ reflect the repayment rate of your borrowers.

What if I want to be more involved with Kiva?

Read about our Hubs model here, and if you’d like to talk more, reach out to trustees@kiva.org.

Who are the Kiva Trustees?

You can find a list of all Kiva Trustees here.
* Make sure to uncheck the box that says “Fundraising Only” to see the full list. 

How do I become a Trustee?

Kiva US is accepting Trustee applications by invitation only at this time. If you are interested in partnering with Kiva, please e-mail trustees@kiva.org. If you are already in contact with a Kiva staff member or Hubs partner, you can ask them for the application directly.

What if I want my account removed from public view?

Email trustees@kiva.org to change your account status to "hidden." When “hidden”:

• Nobody can see your public Trustee profile anymore, including you.

• Your endorsements and endorsed loans are still public.

• You cannot endorse any new loans.

SUPPORTING YOUR BORROWERS

How is Kiva different from other crowdfunders?

How do I endorse a borrower?

Go to your Trustee Dashboard and manually search for the name of the borrower or the name of their business. The loan will show up as long as the application has been started, even if it has not yet been completed. This process should take less than 60 seconds as demonstrated by this video, which we recommend you watch after logging into your Trustee Dashboard.

Why is my endorsement not working?

You may not yet have signed the Trustee Terms of Use, which you must do to be able to endorse loans. Follow these steps to sign the contract:

• Log in and go to https://www.kiva.org/my/Trustee and click "Edit Trustee profile.” 

• Read and sign the contract, and confirm on the "review" page that it's complete.

If this doesn’t solve the problem, please email trustees@kiva.org and provide screenshots.

How should I evaluate whether or not to endorse a borrower?

Ask yourself…

• Do I believe in their character?

  • Is this person committed to their business? 

  • Do I believe they are the type of person who will commit to repaying the loan, even when the going gets tough? 

  • Would I lend this person money?

• Do I believe in their business?

  • Have I seen this person’s business plan and financials? 

  • Has this person done the work to be successful? 

  • Do I understand what they’ll use the loan for and how it will impact their business?

  • Will the loan help to increase revenue and enable repayment?

• Will this loan have a positive social impact?

  • Will the loan have a positive impact on the community?

  • Will the loan have a positive impact on the entrepreneur and his or her family? 

Is there a limit on the number of loans a Trustee can endorse? 

There is no limit to the number of loans a Trustee can endorse, provided you abide by Kiva policies.

What does Kiva consider a conflict of interest, and how is that handled?

1. Employees or volunteers of current Trustees may apply to be Kiva US borrowers except for the following restrictions, and their relationship to Kiva must be disclosed on the relevant public-facing loan page on Kiva’s website (personal story). These borrowers may not be endorsed by the Trustee:

   1. Main supervisor for the Kiva program within their organization

   2. Directly working on the Kiva program

2. If a Trustee has a familial relationship with, or sits on the board of a Kiva US borrower, this must be disclosed on the relevant public-facing loan page on Kiva’s website (personal story.

3. If a Trustee has a direct investment in a business, their endorsement cannot result in a higher loan amount, and this must be disclosed on the relevant public-facing loan page on Kiva’s website (personal story).

What is the baseline eligibility for a Kiva borrower?

See minimum eligibility here.

Can Trustees help borrowers fill out their application?

Yes, Trustees can help in the application process. However, the borrower must be present and must be actively participating in filling out the application. The borrower must also be the one to sign the application. 

Does Kiva look at a borrower’s credit score?

Kiva does a soft pull of a borrower’s credit score. While we do ask for a borrower's credit score when reviewing a loan, we have no minimum credit score requirements.

What happens after endorsement?

Loans will be reviewed by Kiva HQ, and borrowers will be notified if they are approved for a Kiva loan. Trustees are copied in the email sent to borrowers when the loan page goes live.

What is the timeline of the Kiva application process?

Why was a borrower that I endorsed not approved for the full loan amount?

Many factors may contribute to why a borrower was not approved for the full loan amount they applied for. A borrower’s starting loan range will be determined by:

• Debt to income ratio

• Proof of separate bank accounts for business and personal finances

• Government-issued business proof (local, state, or federal)

Please note that approval decisions are subject to change due to other factors in the loan application such as the industry, risk, and impact of the business.

How do repeat loans work?

Kiva borrowers may only have one outstanding loan at a time. Once a borrower fully repays their loan, and at least 6 months have passed since they received the funds, they can apply for another Kiva loan.

If a borrower repaid their previous loan on-time (no late payments), they are eligible to pre-qualify for 2x their previous loan amount (up to $10,000).

 This FAQ doesn’t answer my question! Please email trustees@kiva.org

***Kiva does not lend in NV and ND. We are sorry for any inconvenience. Kiva did a canvas of licensing laws in all 50 states and paused lending in these 5 states because of ambiguous lending laws that make it unclear if Kiva is able to operate.