Citizens expands student loan refinancing program

CITIZENS FINANCIAL GROUP has expanded its student loan refinancing program to include federal students loans as well as private loans.
CITIZENS FINANCIAL GROUP has expanded its student loan refinancing program to include federal students loans as well as private loans.

PROVIDENCE – Having made significant inroads in the refinancing of private student loans, Citizens Financial Group Inc. has expanded its service to include federal student loans.
Begun earlier this year, the Citizens’ Education Refinance Loan program has helped borrowers reduce their monthly payments by an average of $127 while decreasing the average APR by 1.5 percent, according to the bank.
The expansion of the program to include federal government loans will allow even more of college students to consolidate their debt or switch from variable-rate products to fixed-rate borrowings.
“Loans that are affordable when students are 18-years-old often are not the best solutions for them five or more years later, when they have built a strong credit history,” said Brendan Coughlin, president of education finance for Citizens Financial Group. “In one recent example, we saw a customer reduce his monthly payment by more than $800 through refinancing.”
According to Citizens, federal student loans represent 92 percent of student loan debt in the United States, with 40 million consumers holding at least one student loan, making the expansion of the program an opportunity for the bank to tap into a larger market.
Citizens has seen a market opportunity in student loans. Earlier this year, the Providence-based subsidiary of Royal Bank of Scotland PLC bought a $59 million portfolio of private student loans from Boston-based First Marblehead Corp.
“We’re very bullish in this marketplace, and we have an appetite to grow in this space,” Coughlin told Providence Business News in July. Still, he said, “it’s a small industry, but a very important one to our customers.”
According to the release announcing the program, the Citizens’ student loan program can offer eligible applicants variable interest rates as low as 2.31 percent and 4.74 percent for fixed rates, with applicable discounts. For more information about the new program, the bank asks those interested to call (888) 411-0262.

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