the Evil Line

My ING account is currently giving me one percent interest. I have thought about giving loans with Kiva, and I probably should, but it doesn't solve the interest rate problem. Which is why I was intrigued to hear about Prosper:

By putting lenders directly in touch with borrowers—rather than through the banking system—person-to-person lending sites claim that they can cut down on overhead costs, thereby making it cheaper to lend to people with poor credit.

And they claim returns for me, the lender, of around 10 percent.

Of course, it's probably just the next bubble, and as soon as I get involved it will pop.