They say what goes around comes around, and this couldn’t be truer when it comes to peer to peer personal loans. In ancient times, before banks were invented, money was lent from one individual to another. People who were in the need of funds could usually find the person in the area who had excess funds to lend out. It may not have been called it at the time, but this was the origin of peer to peer loans. As our society and its institutions became more formalized, specific businesses were established for the main purpose of lending funds in exchange for the payment of interest. Frequently, these businesses did not use their own funds, but took deposits from people in the area who wanted to earn some return on their excess cash. In turn, these funds would be used to fund the loans to other individuals who were in need of money, in what would now be considered a personal loan. And, of course, they got to retain the difference as their profit.