In The News
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20 April 2021MPOWER Financing partners with Sallie Mae to expand higher education access for international & DACA students
The Partnership Will Provide More Education Financing Solutions to International and DACA Students WASHINGTON DC, April 20, 2021 — MPOWER Financing, an innovative fintech platform and the leading provider of educational loans to high-promise…
- 8 March 2021
ETS Strategic Capital Increases Latest MPOWER Funding Round to $30 Million
Funds will support platform automation and team growth as MPOWER finances thousands of additional international and DACA students at over 350 universities across North America
- 25 January 2021
MPOWER Raises $25M to Increase Educational Access
Funds will support platform automation and team growth as MPOWER finances thousands of additional international and DACA students at over 350 universities across North America
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8 June 2020MPOWER Financing raises $9M to increase educational access for International and DACA students
Funds to support MPOWER’s new Refinancing program and further scale work with international and DACA students at universities in North America WASHINGTON DC, June 8, 2020 — MPOWER Financing, an innovative fintech platform for…
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1 May 2020MPOWER and Internationalstudent.com Central America Scholarship Winners Include Public Health Advocate and Sustainable Entrepreneur
MPOWER Financing and InternationalStudent.com are excited to announce the winners of their Central America Scholarship Program! This scholarship stems from a passion to support hard-working and talented students from Central America. Our friends at…
- 30 March 2020
List of Top 30 Universities in the USA in 2020
Introducing the Best U.S. Universities for International Students! As a student lender, we care greatly about the outcome of your education, after all — we want you to be in a financial position that…
- 11 March 2021
MPOWER Global Citizen Scholarship Winners Include Nigerian Healthcare Advocate
MPOWER Financing is excited to announce the winners of our Global Citizen Scholarship! Our Fall 2020 cycle ended December 31st, and our scholarship committee reviewed over 1,700 eligible applications representing over 110 countries and…
- 7 March 2021
MPOWER Women in STEM Scholarship Winners Include Creative Medical Student From Japan
MPOWER Financing is proud to continue our Women in STEM Scholarship Program, which first launched two years ago. We were excited when our first round received almost 300 applications, but this round shocked us…
- 5 February 2020
MPOWER Women in STEM Scholarship Winners Include Founder Of Cancer Center and African Activist
MPOWER Financing is proud to continue our Women in STEM Scholarship Program, which first launched last February. For the cycle ending on November 15th, 2019, we awarded three scholarships: one grand prize of $5,000,…
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MPOWER Global Citizen Scholarship Winners Include IBM Watson Fellow and Legal Activist
MPOWER Financing is excited to announce the winners for our Global Citizen Scholarship! Our Fall 2019 cycle ended November 15th, and our scholarship committee reviewed 497 eligible applications from over 90 countries and over…
- 2 January 2020
Women From Around the Globe Sound Off About Barriers for Women in STEM
For MPOWER Financing’s Women in STEM Scholarship Program, we asked applicants to write an essay answering the question “What are the biggest barriers facing women and girls pursuing education and careers in STEM in your country?” More than 180 women from over 50 countries responded, providing a fascinating (and sobering) look at the barriers faced by women in STEM around the globe and sharing vivid examples from their own life.
- 14 December 2020
MPOWER Financing adds Jatin Rajput, global financial services executive and fintech investor, to its Board
The innovative and impact-minded fintech firm added industry experts in consumer finance & education, as well as impact investing and corporate strategy, to its Board.
- 22 October 2019
MPOWER Financing adds consumer finance, education, and impact investing experts Nicole West and Erika Norwood to its board
The innovative and impact-minded fintech firm added industry experts in consumer finance & education, as well as impact investing and corporate strategy, to its Board.
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MPOWER Arts Scholarship Winners Include Trailblazing Pakistani Singer and Actress
Our winners include a trailblazing Pakistani woman singing a selection from a classic American musical, a Tunisian shepherd-turned-filmmaker, and an Indian photojournalist documenting Washington D.C.’s homeless community.
- 24 September 2019
MPOWER Financing Invests in Girls’ Education by Supporting Malala Fund
MPOWER is therefore thrilled to support Malala Fund, a pioneer in the movement to break down barriers to girls’ secondary education. For every loan closed and funded between now and December 31, 2019, MPOWER will donate $25 to Malala Fund. Under its agreement with MPOWER, Malala Fund will use these funds to support the work of its Gulmakai Network, which invests in local educators and advocates in regions where the most girls are out of school.
- 23 September 2019
MPOWER GLOBAL CITIZEN SCHOLARSHIP WINNERS ADDRESS ROHINGYA REFUGEE CRISIS, CLIMATE CHANGE
MPOWER Financing is proud to announce the scholarship winners for our Global Citizen program! For the cycle ending July 15th, 2019, our scholarship committee reviewed 788 eligible applications, from over 100 countries and over 230 universities, and across a multitude of disciplines. As always, our team was immensely impressed with the applicants’ qualifications, perseverance, and potential to be changemakers.
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WOMEN IN STEM SCHOLARSHIP WINNERS INCLUDE FULBRIGHT SCHOLAR AND ENTREPRENEUR
MPOWER Financing launched our Women in STEM Scholarship Program back in February, and we were overwhelmed by the quality of applicants for our first round! That’s why we expanded our next round, which closed July 15th, to award three scholarships.
- 19 August 2019
MPOWER Financing raises $100M from Goldman Sachs to reach $200M in total loan financing capital
The innovative fintech firm is using the new funds to finance top international and DACA students at premier universities in the U.S. and Canada.
- 23 July 2019
MPOWER Financing’s amazing team is growing bigger and stronger
MPOWER Financing got amazing interns in the D.C. office this June. Thank you to all the talent joining MPOWER, which makes the team even more powerful! Every single intern is leading their own project during the summer, and making their amazing goals come true. Read on to learn more about our outstanding interns!
- 17 May 2019
MPOWER Global Citizen Scholarship Winners Include DACA Advocate and Researcher of Antibiotic Resistance
MPOWER’s signature scholarship program, the MPOWER Global Citizen Scholarship, awards up to $5,000 to international students at schools we support.
- 4 March 2019
How MPOWER is Celebrating International Women’s Day—and Living its Values
Happy International Women’s Day! This year’s campaign, #BalanceforBetter, focuses on celebrating women’s achievements while calling for a more gender-balanced world.
At MPOWER, we can think of no better way to mark International Women’s Day than by highlighting the strides we have made towards attaining parity in our workforce and our board, building a gender-balanced talent pipeline, supporting the ecosystem of women in tech, and supporting the educational and career aspirations of our female customers around the world.
- 21 January 2019
How MPOWER is Thinking About Social Impact in 2019
Social impact has always been part of MPOWER Financing’s DNA. We’ve been a certified B (social benefit) corporation from day one, and our core product – an education loan for international and DACA students in the U.S. and Canada that requires no co-signer, no collateral, and no U.S. or Canadian credit score – is fully aligned with our mission to make socio-economic mobility borderless.Q
- 17 January 2019
What MPOWER Learned about Social Impact in 2018
- 11 January 2019
MPOWER Named 2019 Top International Student Loan
We are proud to announce that MPOWER Financing’s loan product has been named the Top International Student Loan for 2019 by NerdWallet, with 5 out of 5 stars!
- 30 July 2018
An Infusion of Talent from the Finance, Tech, and Manufacturing Industries at MPOWER
Meet our nine summer interns!
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2 February 2018MPOWER finalist in the 2018 Women in Technology Leadership Awards
We are proud to announce that MPOWER’s Vice President of Business Operations, Lana Bronipolsky, has been selected as a finalist in the Small Business/Entrepreneur category for the 19th Annual Women in Technology Leadership Awards!…
- 27 December 2017
1.5 million, $49 billion and counting: The surge of international students generates exponential impact on U.S. and Canadian economies
A growing number of international students in the U.S. and Canada When I first arrived in the U.S. for college, in 1999, I was one of roughly half a million international students. The number…
- 9 August 2017
What’s The Role Of a CTO In a Start-Up?
It’s a simple enough question, and anyone envisioning oneself in that prized, pressure-cooker-of-a-position has probably thought about the education, skill set, experience and determination necessary to bring to the job. But that doesn’t answer…
- 22 March 2017
Commitment, values and the importance of storytelling: 3 things I wish I’d known as a first-time entrepreneur
Originally published on March 22, 2017 by Villiage Captial on Medium.com. In March of 2014, I left my stable-income job as a management consultant in Washington, DC to start a company focused on removing…
- 21 March 2017
The MPOWER Story: Humble Beginnings
One idea. Two people. Three years in the making. Long before we had a thriving business, multiple offices, or even employees, we had passion, drive, and most importantly, a great idea. In honor of…
- 10 February 2017
The “Travel Ban” and Refugee Policy
In a nutshell: President Trump’s executive order restricting visas / U.S. entry for nationals of seven countries was signed on January 27 and was stopped a week later. Though at the time of this…
- 20 September 2016
MPOWER Featured in Paper by Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia Payment Cards Center
September 20, 2016 ― Philadelphia ― In a discussion paper issued today, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia Payment Cards Center (PCC) features MPOWER Financing and explores the company’s innovative way of assessing and…
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11 November 2015TECH 25
Originally found at: https://issuu.com/washingtonlife/docs/wl1115_digital/41?e=0 The entrepreneurs who are making waves, affecting communities and simplifying our lives. The individuals on the following pages have inspired us with their innovative thinking. They are among the thousands…
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27 October 2015Rising from the Ashes, How the Credit Industry Transformed Post-Crash
Originally found at: https://tsys.com/ngenuity-journal/rising-from-the-ashes-how-the-credit-industry-transformed-post-crash.cfm A revolution in lending and credit analysis October 27, 2015 | by Sanjib Kalita The financial crisis of 2008 shattered institutions that were the bedrock of finance. Amongst the chaos…
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15 October 2015The right step forward: Bringing more awareness of our mission to the Indian community
Recently, MPOWER was featured in leading newspapers across India, detailing our mission and efforts to finance college students from all over the world. We are ecstatic about the coverage our company has received and…
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Education Loan for US studies in less than 5 minutes
Education Loan for US studies in less than 5 minutes Indore (RNN). “Dreams of studying abroad can be fulfilled within a mere 5 minutes. Students don’t need to put themselves through the onerous task…
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28 September 2015Fighting regulation with innovation: The revolutionaries of 1776
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29 June 2015Startup in the Spotlight: Catching up with MPOWER Financing
MPOWER Financing is one of our personal heroes here at Village Capital. The company teamed up with Village Capital just weeks after its initial founding last year, and was recently peer selected for investment…
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8 April 2015Village Capital and Citi Announce Winners of $100,000 for EdTech Program
Originally found at: https://www.vilcap.com/village-capital-and-citi-announce-winners-of-100000-for-edtech-program TOTAL OF $100,000 AWARDED TO MPOWER FINANCING AND PEAR DECK FOR EDTECH BUSINESS SOLUTIONS Selected by peers as top ventures that address challenges in education through technology WASHINGTON, DC (April…
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16 March 2015Challenge cup @1776dc
Manu Smadja pitching at 1776dc Challenge cup event in October of 2014
- 28 October 2014
Member Spotlight: MPOWER’s Manu Smadja Removes Financial Barriers in Education
Originally found at: https://www.1776.vc/insights/member-spotlight-mpowers-manu-smadja-removes-financial-barriers-in-education/ MPOWER stays ahead of the game. The company proposes a radically new way of funding college education by partnering with universities, pooling investments from private investors and applying advanced risk…
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How startups are tackling D.C.’s poverty problem
Originally found at: https://money.cnn.com/2014/10/07/smallbusiness/dc-startups/index.html Let’s start with the good news: Washington, D.C., has one of the highest concentrations of graduate degrees in the country. It’s a place full of smart, wealthy and educated people….
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If I Did It Again: Lessons from Starting a Fintech Company
Originally found at: https://www.cfsinnovation.com/Blog-Posts/October-2014/If-I-Did-it-Again-Lessons-from-Starting-a-FinTech Last week in Chicago, the Financial Solutions Lab hosted a fintech-focused networking event that explored real world lessons in starting a fintech company from folks who’ve done it themselves. Jason Henrichs,…
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Village Capital – Workshop 3
Workshop #3 – this one was FOR THE MONEY. Seriously, This is where the Village Capital Fin Tech accelerator differentiates from the other accelerators. The winner (because, who are we kidding, we are all…
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Village Capital – Workshop 2
Wow – workshop #2 of the Village Capital Fin Tech accelerator just wrapped up — so much learning, so much MORE to do. We opened up the first day of this workshop hearing from…
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Village Capital – Workshop 1
Over 50% of college students face a decision point in their college career. Sadly, this one is not an exciting decision – which job offer to take or where to relocate. It’s the decision…
