True, but... What do you want to see changed and why?
The ToU clearly states you are making a loan.
Yes, Kiva does use the word "loan" in its Terms of Use. But the following essentially negates the concept of a loan.
"....You hereby acknowledge and agree that neither Kiva, its Field Partner(s) nor the Borrower(s) will be obligated or pay you any principal (other than to the extent actually received by Kiva from a Field Partner with respect to such Borrower)...."
In financial and contract terms, a loan requires an obligation on the part of the recipient to repay. The only possible recipients in the Kiva model are Kiva, its Field Partner or the Borrower(s). The above provision clearly states that none of these have an obligation for the return of the principal of the loan the Kiva "lender" makes (other than if Kiva ends up with some repayments on their hands they are obligated to turn them over to Kiva lenders--which frankly isn't much of an obligation when repayments go delinquent).
The Prosper documentation shows a chain of assignment for a loan obligation which is the right concept, although I don't need a note in my possession.
My concern in this is different than realizing that I as a Kiva lender really have no retained rights to go after delinquencies if Kiva determines that the loan is dead. I am saying that the obligation to the Kiva lender has to exist to start with, but the Kiva Lender delegates to Kiva the final determination of either pursuing the loan collection or calling it dead. Then when Kiva calls it dead I end up with a capital loss.
Dan
