NEW YORK (AP) — American Express said Tuesday that
it would begin issuing a new card for small businesses, with
some of the proceeds earmarked to help organizations that
provide ``microcredit'' to struggling entrepreneurs.
The card company said that the equivalent of 1 percent of
the money spent on its Community Business Credit Card will
go to help three lending organizations.
They include: ACCION, which provides small loans and training
to low-income people in Latin America and the United States;
the Association for Enterprise Opportunity, an umbrella group
for small business development; and Count-Me-In for Women's
Economic Independence, which specializes in loans and mentoring
for women entrepreneurs.
Microcredit organizations make very small loans to help
individuals, often women or minorities, get businesses going.
Many work out of their homes, and most wouldn't qualify for
traditional business financing.
American Express said small business owners could apply for
the new cards online. They also will be marketed through 11
national organizations, including the Business Women's Network,
Latin Business Association, the National Association for the
Self Employed and the National Medical Association.
An official at American Express said the program could raise
several million dollars a year for the microcredit groups
but that precise figures were not available.
