Mellon accepts personal assets to secure 5-year credit line. (Mellon Bank Corp.'s Business Builder line of credit)

Mellon Bank Corp. believes it has found a better way to serve businesses needing less than $100,000 of seasonal and revolving credit -- a way that it says doesn't add unnecessary risk to its balance sheet.

The Pittsburgh-based bank's solution is the Business Builder line of credit. Launched last fall, the product allows businesses to pledge both business and personal assets to secure a credit line to which the borrower can gain access by telephone.

And with a five-year term, the product has won favor among small business owners in the bank's Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and New Jersey markets.

"Sometimes, I run into situations where I have a lot of …