NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

My company, Smallknot, is propelled by a dash of rage and a spoonful of optimism. We are angry about how the financial system works for real people. And we believe we can make it better. This is what drives us.

But between the tech and social enterprise spaces, it’s not always easy to know where we fit. As a business, our product is a community crowdfunding platform for local businesses. We help neighbors fund small businesses in exchange for premium goods, services and experiences. Our mission is to empower communities to cultivate local economies through social finance. But even though our goal is to replace bankers with a nurturing neighborhood, let’s be honest: tilting your head and squinting just so could make our pre-sale model resemble a saintly nonprofit lender like Kiva or the not-so-saintly Groupon.