There is fundamental difference between private lending and loan-sharking, and we need to distinguish it.

Unlike loan-sharking, where people exploit need and profit from the exorbitant interest on a loan, private lending, universal and growing stronger in China, seeks to merely make a reasonable return on money that once loaned is no longer available to the lender.

Loans with loan-sharking rates of interests are a criminal act. Private loans seeking a reasonable rate of return are a form of investment.