NEWARK, Del.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Sallie Mae (Nasdaq: SLM), the nation’s saving, planning, and paying for college company, rang the opening bell on the Nasdaq stock market this morning to commemorate the company’s fifth anniversary of being listed on Nasdaq and its continued commitment to helping millions of families make the dream of higher education a reality.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Raymond Quinlan, company executives, and members of the board of directors were joined by four students who each received a Sallie Mae Bridging the Dream Scholarship. The Sallie Mae Bridging the Dream Scholarship recipients, Bryana Blanco of Pembroke Pines, Florida, Kendal Cooney, of Camden, Michigan, Quinton Lopez of Canoga Park, California, and Kayla Pinzur of Brewster, New York, exemplify excellence both inside and outside the classroom and overcame significant obstacles to make college happen.
“We are thrilled to celebrate Sallie Mae’s 5-year anniversary of being traded on the Nasdaq,” said Nelson Griggs, executive vice president, Global Listings Services, Nasdaq. “Sallie Mae has a proven track record of helping students and families reach college through products that promote responsible personal finance. The company continues to successfully combine innovation and enhanced customer service with strong financial results, and we look forward to watching their continued growth as a Nasdaq-listed company.”
While the mission remains the same, today’s Sallie Mae is very much a different company than the one on the Nasdaq stage five years ago. In 2014, the company completed a strategic separation, shedding its role as a federal student loan servicer, and moving forward independently as a consumer bank. Sallie Mae maintains a strong capital position and funding capabilities, and the company now manages a $13.7 billion portfolio of high-quality, private education loans. As a consumer banking business, Sallie Mae is accredited by and has an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau.
“The last five years have been transformational for Sallie Mae. Today we are an innovative, consumer-focused digital bank serving young people and families,” said Raymond Quinlan, chairman and chief executive officer, Sallie Mae. “Our focus and expertise, however, remain the same: helping families save, plan, and pay responsibly for college. We are gratified families consistently choose Sallie Mae, and it is a privilege to serve them.”
This year, Sallie Mae has introduced new products to help families save for college, launched initiatives that encourage families to plan for college, conducted research on how families save and pay for college, partnered to create materials to help families understand and manage credit, and continued to offer competitive private education loans for students and now parents to cover any gaps in college financing. The company is also investing millions to enhance multiple aspects of the customer experience from application through repayment, including a new website and mobile payment app, and has moved all private education loan customer service to the United States.
For more information, visit www.SallieMae.com.
About Sallie Mae
Sallie Mae (Nasdaq: SLM) is the nation’s saving, planning, and paying for college company. Whether college is a long way off or just around the corner, Sallie Mae offers products that promote responsible personal finance, including private education loans, Upromise rewards, scholarship search, college financial planning tools, and online retail banking. Learn more at SallieMae.com. Commonly known as Sallie Mae, SLM Corporation and its subsidiaries are not sponsored by or agencies of the United States of America.
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