Debt on student loans. (Source: Shutterstock)
According to researchers from the Education Data Initiative, student loan debt in the U.S. currently totals $1.73 trillion and is growing six times the rate of the nation's economy. COVID-19 has only exasperated the crisis, with the total, nationwide student loan debt balance growing by 8.28% in 2020 – the biggest spike since 2013. And, the government's emergency federal student loan payment suspension is scheduled to end on Jan. 31, 2022.
A new partnership between the Brookfield, Wis.-based core processor Fiserv and technology firm FutureFuel.io aims to chip away at the student loan debt crisis, the two entities announced last week. Fiserv will leverage FutureFuel.io's machine-learning-driven repayment platform to allow its community financial institution clients, including credit unions, help customers and members manage their debt and strengthen their financial portfolios, according to an announcement from the companies.
FutureFuel.io's platform uses machine learning technology rooted in behavioral economics to help users decide how to pay off their student debt while also saving for the future, the company said, noting that borrowers who use the platform to enroll in federal repayment plans reduce their monthly payments by an average of $326, and can redirect that cash flow to build savings accounts and work toward other financial goals.
The tech firm offers four categories of debt-repayment solutions across a range of non-integrated to integrated options, including API- and widget-powered experiences, SSO and configured co-branded solutions named Benefit, Change, Crush and Learn, it said.
"Our team is focused on creating connections to fintechs as a part of our overall commitment to open banking," Todd Horvath, group president of account processing at Fiserv, stated. "Debt is never an easy topic, but we are confident that our clients and their customers can benefit substantially by making debt management elimination a seamless part of the banking experience."
Fiserv also backed FutureFuel.io in its recently-completed Series A1 round of equity funding, the companies said. Other FutureFuel.io investors included UBS, Aflac, Salesforce, Vulcan Capital, Rethink Impact, Breton, Impact Engine and Sixthirty.
"Fiserv is a global leader within the financial services and payments space, supporting thousands of financial institutions," Laurel Taylor, CEO and founder of FutureFuel.io, stated. "We are thrilled to work alongside their team to bring our platform to millions of Americans who are eager to build stronger, brighter and more resilient financial futures. Fiserv is aggressively advancing its open banking strategies and it is a privilege to support this transformation."
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Natasha Chilingerian
Natasha Chilingerian has been immersed in the credit union industry for over a decade. She first joined CU Times in 2011 as a freelance writer, and following a two-year hiatus from 2013-2015, during which time she served as a communications specialist for Xceed Financial Credit Union (now Kinecta Federal Credit Union), she re-joined the CU Times team full-time as managing editor. She was promoted to executive editor in 2019. In the earlier days of her career, Chilingerian focused on news and lifestyle journalism, serving as a writer and editor for numerous regional publications in Oregon, Louisiana, South Carolina and the San Francisco Bay Area. In addition, she holds experience in marketing copywriting for companies in the finance and technology space. At CU Times, she covers People and Community news, cybersecurity, fintech partnerships, marketing, workplace culture, leadership, DEI, branch strategies, digital banking and more. She currently works remotely and splits her time between Southern California and Portland, Ore.
