Women Who Own Businesses Find Bank Loans Harder to Get

NEW YORK (AP) — Getting a bank loan is still a struggle for many women who own businesses. A survey released today found that 30 percent of such companies were able to get bank loans during the previous three months, compared to half of all the owners surveyed. The survey conducted by researchers at Pepperdine University's Graziadio School of Business and Management and Dun & Bradstreet Corp. questioned owners of companies with up to $100 million in annual revenue. Kirsten Curry has had three rejections in the past six months. Her 8-year-old retirement advisory firm has no debt and has seen revenue rise consistently. But it lost money last year as it invested in technology to help it expand, a possible red flag to lenders. She's waiting to hear from a fourth bank.