Student loan ABS

Moody’s expects net losses over the life of NAVSL 2018-2 to be about 0.95%; that's up slightly from 0.9% for Navient's prevous deal, NAVSL 2018-1 due to the longer remaining terms of the collateral.

The fintech lender's latest offering of $234 million bonds were priced at a 27-basis-point improvement from its previous deal; cheaper funding will allow it to better compete for borrowers in a rising rate environment.

Department of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos says the companies hired by the government to service its own loans should only be subject to federal oversight.

Previously, the rating agencies had capped their ratings at double-A, primarily due to CommonBond’s short operating history; it has only been making loans to borrowers with advanced degrees since 2013.

The Education Department reportedly has plans to shield student loan servicers from state regulators, but the Conference of State Banking Supervisors isn't ready to cede its authority.

Timothy Bowler, president of the ICE Benchmark Administration, which has been responsible for calculating the index since mid-2013, argues that there is a strong case for keeping it going.

So far, consumers have not had much voice in the discussion of a suitable replacement for the benchmark rate; lenders and servicers want to limit any harm, and their liability.

The collateral for Navient Private Education Refi 2018-1 is similar to that of Earnest's previous deal, completed in May, but it is rated two notches higher, at, AAA by S&P Global Ratings.

Refi loans that the servicing behemoth is making through Earnest do not require the same amount of seasoning as new in-school loans, and so can be securitized much sooner.

The nation's largest private student lender plans to use $30 million of its anticipated tax-cut windfall to speed up its diversification plan and strengthen its digital capabilities.