KeyCorp said today it has acquired GradFin, a Philadelphia-based provider of counseling for individuals seeking assistance with student loan debt.
Terms were not announced.
Cleveland-based Key (NYSE: KEY) said the GradFin deal is its next step in providing digital innovation at scale through strategic partnerships with fintechs. GradFin experts provide one-stop shopping for borrowers seeking debt solutions, with a particular focus on working with financial advisors and their clients.
“GradFin combines the best of digital and human interaction to create a unique client experience,” Jamie Warder, head of digital at KeyCorp, said in a news release. “Advisors thoroughly understand the economic environment as well as the specific needs of health care providers, while the digital platform provides fast and effective solutions for debt relief and government forgiveness programs. This approach perfectly fits Key’s commitment to seamless client interactions and provides for a best-in-class experience.”
The transaction is Key’s fourth in the fintech space in less than three years.
Last November, it bought Charlotte-based XUP Payments, a business-to-business-digital platform. That's after the bank led XUP's $3 million seed round with Naples Fintech Ventures earlier in 2021. Key is looking to expand its capabilities within payments and create a better end-to-end experience for clients, CBJ reported at the time.
"We recognized how powerful it could be, really as an asset at Key, as we start to think through the rest of our banking landscape," Ken Gavrity, the bank's head of enterprise payments and analytics, told CBJ of the XUP platform. "Being able to tie all of those (payment experiences) together in a much more digital-first way is really what got us to this point today."
Chris May, president and co-founder of XUP Payments, told CBJ the transaction allowed XUP to continue innovating while also implementing those innovations at a large scale.
Prior to Key's purchase of XUP, it acquired AQN Strategies in early 2021 to enhance its data analytic capabilities, and, in 2019 Key acquired Laurel Road’s digital student loan refinance platform.
