Online Microlenders Offer Capital to Young Businesses
An eBay merchant quadruples his revenue with help from an online microlender.
In 2008 Chris Byrne opened The Gear Geeks, an eBay store that sells musical equipment, with $2,800 in cash. To purchase inventory, the Huntington Beach, Calif., 'trep relied on a business line of credit from his bank. When the recession caused his credit line to dry up, Byrne turned to Atlanta-based Kabbage, one of several online microlenders that offer short-term capital to young businesses.
