Bank of Google — Open for Business

Under the program Google will offer credit ranging from $200 to $100,000 a month to pay for customers’ use of the AdWords program. AdWords raked in the bulk of Google’s 2011 advertising revenue of $37 billion.

Interest rates on the credit cards will be 8.9% in the U.S. and 11.9% in the U.K.

Google’s program is similar to one launched last week by Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), under which Amazon makes loans to independent sellers wanting to offer products at the Amazon Marketplace.

At the end of June, Google had about $43 billion in cash and short-term investments available, and this credit program, like Amazon’s, is an effort to put at least some of that cash to work.

Paul Ausick