Looking to ease concerns over technology financing availability and make credit available for IT purchases at a time when companies are tightening their budgets, IBM Global Financing was set to announce a lease financing program on Thursday.

The captive finance arm of IBM will announce its "Why Wait?" technology financing offer, which provides 90-day interest-free payment deferral followed by a 36-month fair market value lease with competitive rates on IBM Power Systems and storage either directly from IBM or through IBM business partners to "well-qualified business owners," IBM Global Financing said in a prepared statement on Oct. 23.

The financing offer comes in the midst of a global financial crisis that has dried up some types of credit and caused growing concern among those who control corporate IT budgets.

Click here for a list of sources for technology credit and financing.

IBM said the program is designed to facilitate the fast acquisition of technology today so that business owners can position their companies for success once the economy turns around.

“In this current economic climate, it is still important for businesses to invest in new processes and technology to be successful,” said Daniel Ransdell, general manager for client financing at IGF, in a prepared statement. “Investing in innovation, even in difficult economic times, should be part of a company’s long-term strategic play for the future. Market uncertainty should not be an excuse for inertia, rather an opportunity to examine new ways to fund innovation that would put businesses on good footing once the economy rebounds.”

IGF is not the only technology company to introduce a credit offer since the Wall Street meltdown. D&H Distributing recently increased the total amount of credit it will offer to its resellers by another $15 million.

Captive financing arms of technology vendors, including IGF, and technology distributors have not been affected by the credit crunch and financial crisis so far. They point to their understanding of technology financing and risk.

Click here to read why technology lenders say credit is still available for technology purchases.

IBM recently provided a window into its IBM Global Financing arm in its quarterly earnings report, illuminating some moves the company has made to ensure its IGF organization stays healthy during the crisis.

"IBM Global Financing has had a consistent record of performance dating back to 1981, and during that time has developed its own cache of state-of-the-art credit scoring tools to get cash quickly to the most qualified clients," IGF said in its formal statement.

IGF has $34 billion in assets worldwide and provides project financing, commercial financing and asset-recovery services to 125,000 clients in more than 55 countries.