After listening to speech Muhammad Yunis, an economist from Bangladesh, about an innovative program to provide loans to the poor, Jessica Jackley Flannery convinced that microfinance "was the coolest thing in the world." In 2004, she and her husband, Matt Flannery, traveled to Africa and began to discuss how they could contribute to microfinance. In October 2005, they conducted a pilot test with eight Internet entrepreneurs in Uganda. Couple sent a letter to the people at their wedding guest list, announcing the possibility of lending over the weekend, all eight entrepreneurs were funded in full. The duo also sent out a press release that was posted on the Daily Kos, and $ 10,000 was raised in one day. The first person to person micro-lending organizations were born. This case describes operations Kiva and presents challenges faced by the organization, as contemplated growth. "Hide
by David P. Baron Source: Stanford Graduate School of Business 4 pages. Publication Date: October 20, 2008. Prod. #: P70-PDF-ENG