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I like the concept of P2P microlending, especially enabled by technology, so the loan sharks can be kept out of the system.

But to really be sustainable and have a high-impact (as a tool for economic growth in the 3rd worlds, not as a business per se), it should be more localized. Think at something like localbitcoins.com - as a working system - ignore the bitcoin part of it. This way you can get rid of the most of the taxes and decrease the level of fraud.

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I think domestic P2P platforms are a big untapped opportunity in developing countries, especially large ones. They are still rare; Fairplace in Brazil is a notable exception.

An international platform like Zidisha can offer a different value proposition, in that 1) we enable arbitrage in purchasing power parity between wealthy and developing countries (the price of dinner at an upscale restaurant in America could finance the startup of an entire restaurant in Kenya), and 2) our users value the chance to connect with an ordinary person on the other side of the world, learning about their culture, socioeconomic realities, etc.

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