What happened with SEED, and why has Kiva decided that the loans should be defaulted?
A. Kiva and SEED Development Group entered into partnership in January 2007. Following a period of low responsiveness from SEED’s Management, Kiva sent a qualified Fellow to SEED in the summer of 2007 to investigate and monitor loan handling and repayment. Upon discovering that entrepreneurs were not receiving the full amount of the loans raised on Kiva, we immediately halted new loans to SEED. Kiva then followed up with an audit, which confirmed these discrepancies. After confirming the presence of discrepancies, Kiva undertook a swift course of action. We began by retaining the services of a Kenyan law firm to establish a legal case against SEED. Our efforts, in conjunction with SEED’s clients, led to the apprehension of SEED’s Executive Director by the Kenyan authorities. Despite what our lawyers felt was compelling evidence that Kiva funds had been stolen and a crime had been committed, the Kenyan criminal justice system did not bring formal charges against the Executive Director o