Banks of Tomorrow

The bank of tomorrow is already moving…towards community based services.

In UK: Zopa.com
In UK, Zopa contributes since March 2005 to the democratization of the banking economy and festival its second birthday. During these 2 years, Zopa called on 135.000 users impassioned who lent themselves money between them, without traditional banking intermediary.

Thanks to Zopa, the lenders obtained an average output of 6.75%. The borrowers could obtain advantageous interest rates (4,2% on appropriations at 3 years). The noted rate of average defect (borrowers not having been able to refund their loan) was not 0,2%, which much lower than what is noted in the traditional banking environment. Why? The social relations create a pressure by the pars which control the good relations within the community.

Also, Zopa is plans to move into US Market

In US: Prosper.com
In the US, the bank of tomorrow thrives with Prosper (180.000 members, 1 year of existence). Prosper, it is the eBay money. Prosper is a creator of confidence. A place of market of “social lending” can function only with the active participation and the enthusiasm of its members. The latter give a constant feedback: Zopa and Prosper work without relache with their community to improve their platforms uninterrupted.

Prosper is America's first people-to-people lending ... all » marketplace, and was created to make consumer lending more financially and socially rewarding for everyone. The way Prosper works is intuitive to people who have used eBay. Instead of listing and bidding on items, people list and bid on loans using Prosper's online auction platform. People who want to lend set the minimum interest rate they are willing to earn and bid in increments of $50 to $25,000 on loan listings they select. People who lend can easily diversify using "standing orders", which automatically make many small loans to different borrowers. It's a new asset class in investing. In addition to criteria commonly used by institutional lenders, such as credit scores, people who lend can base their decision on a borrowers' group affiliation. Groups on Prosper are critical to bringing people together for the common goal of borrowing at better rates. Groups earn reputations according to their members' repayment records. Groups with successful repayment histories should attract more lenders offering lower rates.

In the Netherlands: Boober.nl
The bank of tomorrow has just opened and has as a promise: “No banks, better deal”.

MicroFinance: http://kiva.org/
Kiva lets you connect with and loan money to unique small businesses in the developing world. By choosing a business on Kiva.org, you can "sponsor a business" and help the world's working poor make great strides towards economic independence. Throughout the course of the loan (usually 6-12 months), you can receive email journal updates from the business you've sponsored. As loans are repaid, you get your loan money back.