Chief Marketing Officer, CommonBond @phildegisi @commonbond W Making Sense of Student Debt Phil DeGisi Chief Marketing Officer, CommonBond @phildegisi @commonbond ©CommonBond Inc. Confidential

A quick introduction Chief Marketing Officer @ CommonBond Joined CommonBond December 2014 Background in ecommerce marketing (Amazon, Walmart.com)

Why I joined CommonBond Because of this day:

In June 2009, I received 2 things that would change my life $150,000 (with >8% interest rates!)

The Student Debt Dilemma

The Stats You Know $1.3+ trillion in total outstanding student loan debt 40+ million Americans hold student debt 70% of college graduates have student debt Sources: NY Fed, Ticas.org

The Stats You Know Average student debt by degree $35k $57k $56k $112k Undergraduate Graduate MBA JD MD DDS Sources: Debt statistics - Undergraduates: Edvisors; Graduates: U.S. News & World Report; MBAs: U.S. News & World Report; Doctors: Association of American Medical Colleges; Dentists: American Dental Education Association; Lawyers: U.S. News & World Report

The Stats You May Not Know 46% 69% 78% are delaying wedding plans are delaying home ownership are delaying the vacation of their dreams Source: CommonBond survey February 2016

Lack of Student Debt Literacy is a key part of the issue…

We need to educate students, graduates, and parents on what their options are

There’s never been more options for student debt repayment Federal programs that can help those struggling to make their monthly payments Refinancing thru a private lender that can help graduates save thousands in interest payments Employers contributing to their employees’ student loans can enable millennials to save more for retirement

Federal Government Programs Income-Based Repayment Plans Public Service Loan Forgiveness

Income Driven Repayment Federal Programs: Income Driven Repayment Download this pdf at www.ticas.org

Public Service Loan Forgiveness Federal Programs: Public Service Loan Forgiveness Must work for government organization, 501(c)(3) non-profit, private not-for-profit org (ie law enforcement, emergency management, public education, and more) 10 years of on-time payments. Should be on income-based repayment plan if planning to take advantage of PSLF Forgiven amount is NOT taxed First year loans will be forgiven as part of this program is 2017 Some discussion around capping the benefit (ie preventing high earners like doctors from getting hundreds of thousands forgiven)

What is student loan refinancing? Refinancing means taking out a new loan to replace an existing loan Lenders pay off your existing loans, and create a new loan for you at a lower interest rate You can refinance federal, private, and previously consolidated student loans

Why are graduates refinancing? By refinancing student loans with a private lender like CommonBond, borrowers can: Lower their monthly payments Lower their interest rate Choose a payment plan that’s right for them Yet, in spite of that, 1 in 4 millennials with student loans aren’t aware refinancing is even an option1 1 Student Loan Hero 2016 Refinancing Survey

CommonBond has delivered over $60,000,000 in savings on student loans $14,581 70% Average member savings 2.22% Our lowest interest rate (5 year variable) APR How much lower our interest rate is versus the Grad Plus government rate5 11 2,000+ Number of refinancing products Students educated through our social promise

Why are CommonBond's rates lower than the government's?

We use technology and data to get to know applicants... Free Cash Flow Education RATE Credit History Location Earnings Potential And many more...

so we can give them a lower rate ... Lowest CommonBond Rate (Variable) Federal Government Grad Plus Rate Federal Government Grad Plus Rate Average CommonBond Rate 7.21% APR 7.21% APR 4.65% APR 2.22% APR Savings = $18,332 (Assumes loan balance of $125,000) Savings = $36,828 (Assumes loan balance of $125,000)

…in a matter of minutes

“ Our members save big: Sarah saved $27,100 Education BA, Hofstra University JD, Cornell Law School “ If I was going to go through the process of refinancing my student loans, I wanted to do it with a company that was really easy to work with. And that was CommonBond. It was nice to talk to real people who actually know things. At other companies, you have to talk to five people to get an answer and wait on hold forever"

The newest opportunity: Employer contribution to student loans Millennials increasingly are looking to their employers for student loan assistance Source: ionTuition

Employers are considering two ways to contribute to their employees’ student loans Employers can contribute to their employees student debt directly Employers are exploring matching their employees’ student loan payments with a 401k match

It’s still very early days… Source: Willits Towers Watson Survey – March 2016

…and Congress will have a significant impact on the adoption rate Bills in Congress that, if passed, would make the tax treatment of employer student loan repayment similar to that of a 401(k): Employer Participation in Student Loan Assistance Act (House) Student Loan Repayment Assistance Act of 2015 (House) Employer Participation in Repayment Act of 2016 (Senate) Student Tax Affordability and Relief Act (Senate)

To summarize There has never been more ways for graduates to manage their student debt Awareness of options and understanding of the ramifications is key to putting a dent in the student loan dilemma Employers are starting to see the opportunity to contribute to the solution and help millennials save for retirement as a result We as financial literacy enables can play a critical role in helping more people make the best, most-informed choice for them

Thank you! Keep in touch: @phildegisi phil@commonbond.co