In this month's newsletter, we pay a visit to an old friend, speak to a member whose bright idea made him money, and help bring peace to the world. It's a busy old edition, make no mistake.

• 4,329 new members joined
• Thanks to the base rate rise, lenders will now enjoy 5.0% interest on money in their holding account
• The FAQs have been revamped
• The new, improved weekly email was run past the discussion board and will be going out from next week
• So that lenders can see exactly what's happening with their money, we started publishing a weekly update on late repayments. You can see it here
• Zopa was named as one of the top ten British dotcoms by the Guardian
• There was a change of personnel, as Giles Andrews became UK MD and James Alexander moved from UK CEO to a non-executive role, where he will continue to play an active part in Zopa's development

Regular readers will remember Bob Blackman (aka injector), the Zopa member who borrowed to self-publish his humorous science fiction trilogy. Well, we hadn't heard from him for a while so we thought it was high time to check on his progress.

Hi Bob – can you remind us of the plot again?
Nick Hob is the Horsepower Whisperer. He talks the torque and races in the Wild Hunt. With a few well-chosen words, he inspires engines to great feats of speed, power and endurance. And he will share this power with you if you will trade with him your soul.

Sounds like quite a character. What happens to him then?
After answering a Save Our Souls message from a doomed airliner, Nick can barely believe his Extra Sentiency Perception. He's been short changed. Spirits are being sapped. Colours are being rinsed out of life's rich tapestry. In Post Unification Euphobia, souls are being eradicated.

Can Hob offer salvation? Or is he just another destroyer?

We'll have to buy the book to find out, we guess. When should we be heading down to Waterstones?
Paperback versions of The Horsepower Whisperer (the first book in the trilogy) should be available within three months and ready for Christmas, while the e-book will be much sooner than that - I'm just waiting for permission to use some quotes and song lyrics.

Your website's up and running already – what can Zopa members find on it?
There's a blog, sample chapters for both The Horsepower Whisperer and The Wormton Lamb (the second in the trilogy) and a couple of forthcoming attractions that will be forthcoming dreckly - or even sooner. There'll be a link to Amazon soon, too, so you can pre-order The Horsepower Whisperer.

Which every Zopa member should do. Good luck with it all Bob.

Bob has very kindly offered to give away 5 advanced copies of The Horsepower Whisperer to Zopa members. Simply send an email to tom@zopa.com with the subject line ‘I'd like a copy' - and if you're one of the first 5, you'll win yourself a nice holiday read.

For non-Zopa members, flogging your family heirlooms at a car boot sale or sending Jeremy Beadle that video of you falling off a trampoline are good ways of making money. But for Zopa members, the Zopa Tell a Friend scheme is a much better option. You get £30 for everyone you bring to Zopa who goes on to lend £500 or borrow (before 30th Sept 2007), and as Zopa lender michaels reveals, with a bit of creativity you could reach thousands of people...

So how did you go about getting people to your Tell a Friend page Michael?
By posting the link on the referral forum of MoneySavingExpert.com.

And how many people have seen the post to date?
2,368

Wow – no wonder you're one of our top Tell a Frienders. And you got money for everyone who went on to lend or borrow?
Yes. I did encounter a few problems getting the money paid promptly, but Zopa support quickly resolved these. My main interest isn't just earning money though – I'm keen on the concept of Zopa and have actively 'spread the word' elsewhere where referral money was not involved.

Excellent stuff. So who do you think Zopa appeals to?
Financially savvy individuals looking for a good loan rate. Those with some 'spare' money looking for alternative investments, especially internet-based. Those who feel avoiding the banks is morally better.

Moving on from matters Zopa, who would you invite to your dream dinner party?
I'm probably one of the few users who doesn't do dinner parties. But I would like to share a beer with Kelis, Kofi Annan or Nelson Mandela; not all at once!

No – that would be chaos. Thanks Michael.

If you've come up with an ingenuous way of telling your friends about Zopa, we'd love to hear about it. Drop an email to tom@zopa.com.

September 21st used to be notable for being the birthday of the drummer from Motorhead, as well as the date Belize gained independence from the UK. But the charity Peace One Day is trying to make it memorable for something else entirely, by establishing it as an annual day of global ceasefire and non-violence.

Peace One Day started in 1999, and quickly gained a lot of high profile supporters: His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Kofi Annan, Nelson Mandela, Mary Robinson, Condoleeza Rice, Lord David Puttnam, and others. After some vigorous campaigning, in 2001 the UN member states unanimously voted to adopt September 21st as Peace Day - and last year, 200 countries committed to the day, with over 27 million people taking part.

This year, Peace One Day are hoping to get even more people involved. There are activities taking place all over the world, including a flagship concert at the Royal Albert Hall. Everyone can play their part, and to find out how you can get involved, visit the Peace One Day website.

That's it for August - we'll meet again come September. In the meantime, enjoy the new format weekly emails.

If you prefer not to receive communication like this from Zopa, no hard feelings. Email contactus@zopa.com to let us know. Just so you know it's us, your username is ###.

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