This article is a part of a series on P2P Lending:
1. P2P Lending Overview
2. P2P Borrowers
3. P2P Lenders
4. P2P Lender Profile: Prosper
5. P2P Lender Profile: Zopa


P2P lending is a new application for P2P services and technology. It directly connects and provides benefits to individual lenders and borrowers. P2P lending bypasses banks and other formal financial institution. It's often called Social Lending, since part of its appeal is the person to person nature of the service.

P2P lending services are not financial institutions. They do not guarantee loans or rates. They are an exchange or intermediary that facilitates the matching of lenders and borrowers and the transfer of funds and payments.

The service may include social networking features, such as photos, borrower Q&A, friends, borrower recommendations, community groups, and listing sharing. Loans are generally small, typically $1,000 to $25,000 and spread out over many lenders who can loan as little as $50.

Two leading P2P lenders are Prosper from the US and Zopa from Britain.