Community Micro Lending makes loans to people who have a good idea and the ability to carry it out, but don’t qualify for credit at a bank. We work with people to develop a business plan and budget. When the application is ready, staff sends it to our loan committee. The applicant makes a pitch to the committee and it’s usually an inspiring hour of Q and A. The loan committee deliberates and if it approves the loan, sets the length of loan and risk rating.

This is where it gets exciting. We post a profile on the lend page describing the applicant and the business. People read about the business and make a loan right here. Welcome to Canada’s first online peer-to-peer micro lending! Lenders can lend a minimum of $500 (plans in the works to reduce this). When the loan is fully raised we disburse it to the borrower. The borrower repays Community Micro Lending and we repay the lender. And the local economy flourishes.