The recently introduced Access to Capital for Entrepreneurs Act of 2007 works to make financing less of a headache for micro-businesses and we hope to see it progress.
Kristie Darien, Executive Director, Legislative Office, NASE

Micro-business owners are facing considerable challenges when it comes to finding and maintaining finances for their businesses, according to a recent online survey by the National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE).

The survey showed just how intertwined business and personal finances can be for small firms. Nearly sixty percent of respondents say they rely on personal finances as their primary source of funding to start up their business. That habit continues after the business is established, with thirty-six percent continuing to use their personal savings as an ongoing means of finance. These numbers remain similar to an NASE poll in 2005, which found that a majority of micro-business owners (57 percent) initially fund their businesses using personal savings, and 40 percent use personal savings thereafter.

About two-thirds of respondents struggle to find adequate funding resources, a common complaint of small businesses. In addition, entrepreneurs say that one of the largest obstacles they face in gaining access to capital is their credit rating (26.2 percent), followed closely by a lack of collateral (21.5 percent).

"The recently introduced Access to Capital for Entrepreneurs Act of 2007 works to make financing less of a headache for micro-businesses and we hope to see it progress," remarked Kristie Darien, NASE executive director of the legislative office.