Just objectively, I think it's unrealistic for you to expect anyone to fund a five year old site that has only managed to attract a few thousand users, and apparently not enough paying users to cover its own server costs. The fact that you are not in the United States is probably not the reason for your lack of success to date.
That said, as an entrepreneur who is NOT in the United States, I agree that setting up payment systems is a real pain point. My suggestion is that you get a part-time job. It will cost you a few thousand a year to own an international business (register it anywhere) and you may end up paying prohibitively for the right to process credit cards (5%+ per transaction).
But it is possible. In the meantime, if you really want to slum it, there is nothing stopping you from putting up a payment screen and collecting credit card numbers, then getting your friend in the US to collect the cash for you while you build a compelling case for someone to lend you the money to do things more legitimately. I suspect that once you've started your own business and have a revenue stream, you won't want investment though.
That said, as an entrepreneur who is NOT in the United States, I agree that setting up payment systems is a real pain point. My suggestion is that you get a part-time job. It will cost you a few thousand a year to own an international business (register it anywhere) and you may end up paying prohibitively for the right to process credit cards (5%+ per transaction).
But it is possible. In the meantime, if you really want to slum it, there is nothing stopping you from putting up a payment screen and collecting credit card numbers, then getting your friend in the US to collect the cash for you while you build a compelling case for someone to lend you the money to do things more legitimately. I suspect that once you've started your own business and have a revenue stream, you won't want investment though.