Credit Woes Hit Entrepreneurs

A credit-card crunch is squelching the dreams of entrepreneurs.

Jack Diamond of Tampa laid off employees after Bank of America cut his credit line.

For two years, Jack Diamond used his Bank of America small-business credit card to finance his plants-and-aquatics nursery business in Tampa, Fla. He would use the credit card to purchase plants, then pay down his balance after he sold lilies, pond plants and aquatic fertilizer to customers.

Last September, Bank of America Corp. cut the $46,000 credit line on his card to $27,200, just a few hundred dollars above his current balance. He couldn’t buy the plants, seeds and equipment he needed for his spring selling season. He laid off six of his eight employees.

"I’m almost living paycheck to paycheck," says Mr. Diamond, 55 years old, who is considering filing for business bankruptcy.

By JANE J. KIM

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