MPOWER Financing, a fintech company providing educational loans to high-potential international and DACA students, has completed its largest funding round to-date with USD110 million in new financing for students enrolling in major US universities.
This latest round, led by Gray Matters Capital and Community Investment Management (CIM), will be used to support new product growth and technology enhancements as well as to finance MPOWER Financing’s expanding student loan portfolio.
“We co-created a unique type of debt with Community Investment Management’s leadership team. This USD100 million is just the beginning of MPOWER’s Capital Markets roadmap,” says Mike Davis, MPOWER Financing Chief Investment Officer and co-founder.
“The raise is a testimony to the importance of financial access to global education and the central role that international students play in US and Canadian universities,” says Manu Smadja, MPOWER Financing CEO and co-founder. “The round brought together a diverse mix of domestic, international, traditional and impact-focused investors such as Breega Capital, Potencia Ventures, and University Ventures. All existing MPOWER Financing investors with an active fund re-upped their commitment including Village Capital, 1776, VARIV, Fresco Capital, Zephyr Management, K Street and Goal Structured Solutions.”
“We have enormous respect for the work that MPOWER Financing is doing to revolutionise student lending – globally,” says Erika Norwood, executive director of Gray Matters Capital. “The world is full of obvious things and for us investing in MPOWER Financing was a no-brainer. Many lenders talk about levelling the playing field so that quality education is accessible but they are actually doing it. We’re honoured to be a part of their impact and excited to see what’s next on their horizon.”
“As the first impact investment firm focused on marketplace lending, we look for lenders with alternative lending methodologies which serve creditworthy borrowers with responsible and transparent loan terms,” says Jacob Haar, managing partner and head of investments and operations for CIM.
