CommonBond Funding, Investors & Competitors

CommonBond has raised $131M across 5 funding rounds, most recently a $50M Series D in March 2018.

Last CommonBond funding round

$50M

Series D · Mar 2018

Cumulative funding CommonBond raised

$131M

across 5 funding rounds

Key investors in CommonBond

  • Social Capital
  • Tribeca Venture Partners
  • August Capital
  • Thomas Glocer
  • Vikram Pandit
  • Tom Kalaris
  • Nyca Partners
  • Neuberger Berman

CommonBond Overview

About CommonBond

CommonBond is a New York City-headquartered fintech lender focused on student loans and refinancing. It has originated over $4 billion in loans since 2012, offering fixed and variable rates with social impact features like loan scholarships. Acquired by Nelnet in 2021, CommonBond serves borrowers from 1,800 schools including NYU and Stanford through an online platform integrated with income-share repayment options.


Founded

2011

HQ

United StatesNew York City, NY

Status

Privately held

Customer focus

B2C

Revenue model

Product sales

CommonBond Funding History

CommonBond has raised a total of $131M across 5 funding rounds.

CommonBond's first fundraising round was a $9M Series A in September 2013. The most recent completed round was a $50M Series D in March 2018.

CommonBond funding rounds

CommonBond funding rounds
DateStageInvestorsRaisedDeal Summary
Mar 2018Series DFifth Third Bank (lead)$50MCommonBond is a fintech company that provides student loan refinancing and education financing products, combining technology with competitive rates and customer service. Founded on a "one-for-one" social mission model, the company donates funds for education in underserved communities through its partnership with Pencils of Promise for every loan it originates. In March 2018, CommonBond closed a $50 million Series D equity round led by Fifth Third Capital Holdings (a subsidiary of Fifth Third Bancorp), with participation from First Republic Bank and Columbia Seligman Investments, along with existing investors including Neuberger Berman, August Capital, and Nyca Partners. This round brought CommonBond's total cumulative funding to over $130 million. The company demonstrated strong operational metrics in 2017, including 250 percent year-over-year revenue growth, surpassing net income targets by millions, and maintaining only two credit defaults through year-end. By the time of the funding announcement, CommonBond had secured over $3 billion in lending capacity, closed its first AAA-rated securitization, and funded over $1.5 billion in cumulative loans for tens of thousands of members. Following the investment, Fifth Third Bank announced plans to offer CommonBond's student loan refinancing solution to its own banking customers, leveraging CommonBond's technology and underwriting capabilities to address student debt, a major financial challenge for Fifth Third's customer base.
Jul 2016Series CNeuberger Berman (lead); August Capital; Tribeca Venture Partners; Social Capital$30MCommonBond, a student loan platform offering lower-interest refinancing for graduate and undergraduate loans compared to traditional banks, announced a $30 million Series C equity round on July 19, 2016, led by Neuberger Berman Private Equity, with participation from August Capital, Tribeca Venture Partners, Social Capital, Nyca Partners, and Victory Park Capital. The company simultaneously raised $300 million in debt funding, separate from a prior $275 million round earlier that year, bringing total equity raised to under $80 million and combined equity plus debt to around $1 billion. CommonBond acquired Gradible, a career networking platform for MBA students, to expand its ecosystem. Neuberger Berman highlighted CommonBond's strengths in underwriting, capital markets, technology, and customer acquisition amid the early disruption of online lending in fintech. Investors also included notable finance figures like ex-Citigroup CEO Vikram Pandit, former Thomson Reuters CEO Tom Glocer, and ex-Barclays executive Tom Kalaris. For context, competitor Social Finance (SoFi) had raised at an estimated $4 billion valuation the prior year. CommonBond positioned itself as a leader in MBA and professional student loan refinancing, emphasizing its nonprofit partnership model with Room to Read to fund education in developing countries.
Sep 2015Series BAugust Capital (lead); Thomas Glocer; Nyca Partners; Tribeca Venture Partners; Social Capital; Victory Park Capital; Tom Kalaris; Vikram Pandit$37MCommonBond is a marketplace lending platform focused on student loans, lowering costs for borrowers while providing returns to investors. In September 2015, it raised $35 million in Series B funding led by August Capital, with Nyca Partners and existing investors including Social Capital, Tribeca Venture Partners, Victory Park Capital, and individuals like Thomas Glocer, Tom Kalaris, and Vikram Pandit participating. The funds were earmarked to expand the team, scale operations nationwide, enhance technology, and improve customer service. The company demonstrated strong growth, with loan originations increasing more than six-fold year-over-year through the first half of 2015 and on track to exceed $500 million by year-end, with expectations to surpass $1 billion in 2016. Key 2015 milestones included launching the Investor Marketplace in February, enabling qualified investors to buy loans directly, and completing an inaugural securitization in June that received investment-grade ratings from DBRS and Moody's—the first for a marketplace lending first-time issuer. Additional traction came from partnerships like a deal with Nelnet resulting in $150 million in loan purchases, alongside plans to attract larger capital pools and enter new markets.
Oct 2014Series A-$6M-
Sep 2013Series ATribeca Venture Partners (lead); Thomas Gloce; Thomas Glocer; Nelnet; Social Capital; Tom Kalaris; Charles Stonehill; Vikram Pandit$9M-

Who has invested in CommonBond?

13 investors have backed CommonBond across its funding rounds, including Social Capital, Tribeca Venture Partners, August Capital, Thomas Glocer, Vikram Pandit and Tom Kalaris.

Lead investors include Fifth Third Bank, Neuberger Berman, August Capital and Tribeca Venture Partners.


CommonBond Investors

Investors in CommonBond by funding rounds participated
InvestorHQRoundsRoleFirst check
Tribeca Venture PartnersUnited StatesNew York City, NY3LeadSep 2013
Social CapitalUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA3ParticipantSep 2013
Thomas GlocerUnited StatesNew York City, NY2ParticipantSep 2013
August CapitalUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA2LeadSep 2015
Tom KalarisUnited KingdomLondon2ParticipantSep 2013
Vikram PanditUnited StatesNew York City, NY2ParticipantSep 2013
Thomas Gloce--1ParticipantSep 2013
NelnetUnited StatesLincoln, NE1ParticipantSep 2013
Nyca PartnersUnited StatesNew York City, NY1ParticipantSep 2015
Neuberger BermanUnited StatesNew York City, NY1LeadJul 2016
Victory Park CapitalUnited StatesChicago, IL1ParticipantSep 2015

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Benchmark 350K+ Funding Rounds and Disclosed VC Valuation Multiples

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Acquisitions by CommonBond

CommonBond has acquired 2 companies to date.

Last acquisition by CommonBond was on December 4th 2018. CommonBond acquired NextGenVest for undisclosed valuation.


Latest Acquisitions by CommonBond

NextGenVest
Gradible
Description
NextGenVest is a New York-based financial technology company offering an AI-driven coaching platform that guides college students on budgeting, credit building, and loan repayment strategies. The service connects users to human advisors for personalized plans aimed at minimizing debt accumulation. Founded in 2014, NextGenVest partners with over 100 universities and has facilitated millions in student loan savings through its mobile app features.
Gradible is a San Francisco-headquartered platform simplifying student loan management for US borrowers. Its application analyzes debt profiles to match users with federal repayment programs, forgiveness options, and refinancing lenders. Expert advisors guide applicants through Public Service Loan Forgiveness, income-driven plans, and consolidation processes, serving individuals from over 1,000 colleges and universities.
HQ CountryUnited StatesUnited States
HQ City
New York City, NY
New York City, NY
Deal Date4 Dec 20181 Aug 2016
Valuationundisclosedundisclosed
EV/Revenue
EV/EBITDA

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CommonBond Competitors

CommonBond competitors include listed companies like Jio Financial Services and Klarna, and private ones like Jiedaibao, Upgrade, Mynt and Lendable.

Public and private companies comparable to CommonBond
CompanyHQStatusRevenueEBITDAValuationRevenue Multiple
Jio Financial ServicesIndiaIndiaPublicly listed$332M$272M$16B38.1x
JiedaibaoChinaBeijingPrivate--$7.6B-
UpgradeUnited StatesSan Francisco, CAPrivate$1B-$7.5B7.5x
KlarnaSwedenSwedenPublicly listed$3.5B$551M$5.3B1.3x
MyntPhilippinesManilaPrivate--$5B-
LendableUnited KingdomLondonPrivate$114M$22M$4.7B40.8x

CommonBond Public Comps

CommonBond is still privately-owned, but its public comps include Capital One, Rocket Companies, Bajaj Finserv, Shriram Finance, Synchrony, SoFi, Eurobank, Jio Financial Services, Cholamandalam and Tata Capital.

Last FYEV/RevenueEV/EBITDA
RevenueEBITDALast FYLTM2027ELast FYLTM2027E
Capital One$53B-2.3x2.0x--
Rocket Companies$6.3B$1.4B7.8x5.0x36.3x19.2x
Bajaj Finserv$14B$5.9B5.7x5.1x14.0x25.3x
Shriram Finance$2.6B$1.6B16.4x13.5x25.9x22.2x
Synchrony$15B-1.8x1.7x--
SoFi$3.6B$1.1B6.0x4.8x20.5x14.8x
Eurobank$3.9B-5.0x4.6x--
Jio Financial Services$332M$272M47.6x38.1x58.1x-

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Common questions about CommonBond

When was CommonBond founded?CommonBond was founded in 2011.
Where is CommonBond headquartered?CommonBond is headquartered in New York City, NY, United States.
Is CommonBond publicly listed?No, CommonBond is a private, VC-backed company.
How much funding has CommonBond raised?CommonBond has raised $131M across 5 funding rounds.
What was CommonBond's last funding round?CommonBond's last funding round was a $50M Series D in March 2018, led by Fifth Third Bank.
Who are CommonBond's investors?CommonBond's investors include Tribeca Venture Partners, Social Capital, Thomas Glocer, August Capital, Tom Kalaris, Vikram Pandit, Thomas Gloce, Nelnet, Nyca Partners, Neuberger Berman and 3 others.
Which companies are comparable to CommonBond?Companies comparable to CommonBond include Jio Financial Services, Jiedaibao, Upgrade, Klarna, Mynt and Lendable.
How many companies has CommonBond acquired?CommonBond has acquired 2 companies, including NextGenVest and Gradible.

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