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Some 95% of the bank's personal loans have been made to women, although the bulk of commercial loan dollars has gone to "prime accounts" like Gulf & Western Industries—not primarily too small, female-run enterprises, as might have been expected. Says Benedict: "Our loan policy is no different from other banks." As a new institution, he adds, First Women's must be extra cautious in lending money because otherwise "every deadbeat in town will beat a path to our door."
Despite the New York institution's troubles, two other women's banks have opened in the past year: the San Diego Women's Bank and Western Women's Bank in San Francisco. Several similar banks have been incorporated but are not yet in business. Curiously, though, the whole idea sparks audible animosity among women who have succeeded in conventional banking. Says Patricia Weninger, vice president of Fidelity Mutual Savings Bank in Spokane, Wash.: "We don't need a 'women's' bank."
Too Little. One reason for thinking so is that, just as First Women's was opening in New York a year ago, the Federal Reserve Board spelled out rules that all banks must follow to comply with the Equal Credit Opportunity Act. If those rules are vigorously enforced, no bank will be able to discriminate against—or in favor of—women. In that case, many women may prefer the efficiency and wide range of services provided by the big established banks. Whether or not they are too little, the women's banks may be too late.