In the News
To read a news item, click on an item.Date
Item
February 18, 2009
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Need a college loan? Ask your friends online. "As higher-education costs rise and families feel the squeeze on traditional sources for college funding, students are on the hunt for innovative ways to pay their bills. In addition to loan websites like GreenNote, other sites are cropping up where students can raise donations for college." read more
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January 6, 2009
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The Bank of Mom and Dad "As the lending market tightens up, more people are turning to their friends and families for loans. A new company, GreenNote, encourages students to tap their friends and family for student loans." read more
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November 18, 2008
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5 alternatives to borrowing from banks "Traditional student loans are drying up and college tuition costs are soaring. Enter GreenNote, a Rancho Cordova, Calif.-based startup that has developed an online service for students to hit up friends and family willing to help foot the bill for school." read more
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November 02, 2008
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Loans in the Time of Facebook "GreenNote, whose interest rate is fixed at 6.8 percent, does not do credit checks but disburses money only to the college." read more
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October 02, 2008
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Social Web sites help fill student loan gap "Jennifer Reynolds doesn't like asking people for money, but the Santa Clara University graduate student found herself writing a pitch for a $7,000 school loan that a company called GreenNote then posted on the Internet. Within a day of GreenNote posting her pitch, she had a $5,000 commitment from a friend." read more
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September 10, 2008
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What's New: P2P Loans for College "Recently, the site added the GreenNote Network, which allows students to seek help from strangers." read more
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September 04, 2008
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Last-Minute Student Loans Are Still Available "Christina Christopher of Adelanto, Calif., started to panic earlier this year when she maxed out her Stafford loans and needed $2,500 more to finish her M.B.A. at Devry University, a for-profit school. She was rejected by all four banks to which she applied for a private loan. In desperation, she tried one of the new companies that help students get friends and family to give them loans. She posted a profile on Greennote.com and E-mailed just about everyone she knew. Within three weeks, friends and even a few strangers forwarded enough for Christopher to pay for her last class and graduate. "I'm ecstatic," she says." read more
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August 27, 2008
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Financing Is as Close as the Nearest Angel "At Greennote.com, the students don't even have co-signers. 'Lenders just want to help; they're not looking for pure investment returns,' CEO Akash Agarwal says." read more
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August 24, 2008
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From the Ground Up "She then started reaching out to former professors, friends and family members. Her sister contributed $100. So did her boyfriend's mother. A woman she used to do volunteer work for loaned $150. A cousin contributed $1,000. The remaining balance -- $1,650 -- came from total strangers." read more
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August 12, 2008
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GreenNote Peer to Peer Education Loans "GreenNote has also established the GreenNote Network to allow unrelated individuals, institutions and affiliate groups to lend to students. The terms of the loans are the same as for friends and family. GreenNote allows the lenders to select students based on a variety of demographic information, such as area of study and the name of the school." read more |
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August 12, 2008
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Matching Borrower With Lender, Social-Network Style "'We felt it was an interesting concept to handle private loans, though I'm uncertain whether it will be something our students can get into,' said Doug Severs, director of financial aid at Idaho State University, which lists GreenNote on its alternative provider list" read more
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August 11, 2008
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Social networking trend spreads to personal finance "What social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook have done for online personal interaction, Web sites like finicity.com, Prosper and GreenNote are now doing for personal finance [. . . ] GreenNote allows students to ask for student loans. 'This is a way for a student to tap into their social network, their extended network of family and friends, who may be interested in helping them in their cause for education,' said Akash Agarwal, GreenNote chief executive. 'The student creates a profile and invites people, and our system takes over.'" read more
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August 10, 2008
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Tough economic times makes paying tuition difficult "Another option is microfinancing websites such as GreenNote. The company allows students to set up profiles telling their stories and why they need money for school. The profile is then sent to potential lenders such as family, friends and other community members. [. . . ] 'Everyone qualifies,' Agarwal said of the program. 'We understand and accept that students don't have good or perfect credit histories.'" read more
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August 08, 2008
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Love Social Networking? Need Money for School? Check Out GreenNote "If you're like most students, you're paying for your education through a variety of sources: loans from one place, grants from another, income from your own gig. A company called GreenNote may be able to help with another source: your social network." read more
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July 25, 2008
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Website helps creative student loans "There's a brand new way for parents and students to afford the cost of college tuition. It's called GreenNote, and it allows friends, family and complete strangers to invest in a student's future." view the video
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July 14, 2008
P2P Lending Spreading To Student Loan Market
| "Some credit unions have tempered the threat from one of the largest peer-to-peer lenders, Zopa, by pairing up with the online lender. But now a new player is emerging called GreenNote that focuses exclusively on college loans-allowing individuals, financial institutions and all sorts of different groups to lend as little as $100 to the students of their choice." read more |
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- Matt Blumenfeld, Credit Union Journal |
July 05, 2008
Paydirt: Student loan locator
| "Students in need of private loans have a growing list of resources at their fingertips. Greennote.com lets students borrow money from their social network at a rate rivaling federally guaranteed loans without needing a cosigner or a credit check." read more |
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- Kara McGuire, Star Tribune |
June 30, 2008
A Gazette Minute Interview
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"What should a college president know about micro student loans? Social network-based lending is an excellent way to expand and then utilize the social networks of students, and consequently the school..." read more |
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June 13, 2008
Student loans meet social networks
| "Instead of a coffee mug or tote bag, lenders get the satisfaction of helping someone they love -- and some interest on a loan." read more |
 
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June 04, 2008
P-to-P Start-Up Touts Acquaintance Model
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"Edward Woods, a senior analyst for Celent LLC, a Boston market research unit of Marsh & McLennan Cos., said that in many ways GreenNote resembles Kiva Microfunds...'It's [GreenNote] going to open up more people that are going to be interested in helping you,' because 'this is more official,' he said. 'I know where the money is going.' Mr. Woods aggreed that there is opportunity for P-to-P student loan facilitators in the current lending environment. Banks 'are less able to lend, not because the borrower's any less credible, but because the credit environment has changed,' he said." read more |
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- Daniel Wolfe, American Banker |
June 04, 2008
Another Peer-to-Peer Lender Starts Offering Student Loans
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"Officials at Menlo College, in Atherton, Calif., also have linked to GreenNote from their Web site. 'I think it's a great alternative for students,' said David L, Placey, the college's dean of enrollment management. The service is particularly attractive in light of the flux in the broader student-loan market, he said. Peer-to-peer sites often lend to students at rates that are lower than those for other private loans." read more |
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- Beckie Supiano, The Chronicle of Higher Education |
June 02, 2008
GreenNote lets students get low-cost loans from friends and family
| "Social networks aren't just for fun. A new company leverages existing networks to help students do something really useful - obtain low-cost college loans from friends, family and other benefactors in the same social circle that the students may not even know about.GreenNote is debuting a site Wednesday that lets a student do just that..." read more |
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- Dean Takahashi, VentureBeat |
June 02, 2008
At microloan sites, the new college try
| "With banks scrutinizing loan applicants with renewed fervor, students who need money to cover college tuition could start looking to friends, family, and social networking for cash. Two start-ups are banking on the premise, with Web sites that help college students secure small loans for school from relatives, close friends, and their extended social networks. Their timing couldn't be better..." read more |
 
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- Stefanie Olsen, Cnet News.com |
June 02, 2008
GreenNote Offers More Peer-to-Peer Loans To Tackle the College Funding Gap
| "If you are having trouble paying for college, maybe you can hit up your social network for a loan. That's the idea behind GreenNote, another peer-to-peer lending startup that is launching this week. (The site is still going through load testing, but should be up fully by Wednesday). Prosper, Zopa, and Lending Club (which is under regulatory scrutiny) already offer general P2P loans, but GreenNote is more like..." read more |
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- Erick Schonfeld, TechCrunch |
May 21, 2008
Learn About Student Peer To Peer Lending
| "...And not all students need good credit to finance their education. According to a new company called GreenNote, all they need is a strong social network. On GreenNote, which is scheduled to launch June 4, students will be able to create a profile, and then use it to solicit friends and family for funds. "GreenNote will formalize a loan so there is a structure in place to aggregate all the money, take a promissory note and then route the money on [the student's] behalf to the school" says Agarwal of GreenNote..." read more |
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- Juliana Bunim, MainStreet |
May 13, 2008
The Latest Twist in Student Loans
| "...In recent months, peer-to-peer lending sites (BusinessWeek, 4/23/08) such as Prosper and Virgin Money USA have introduced student loans or started marketing existing offerings to families looking for college funds. Others, including startups GreenNote and Fynanz, are focused exclusively on making college loans. Analysts say the sites are benefiting from the confluence of ..." read more |
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- Anne Tergesen, BusinessWeek |
Press Room
To see an entire press release, click on an item.Date
Item
July 08, 2008
GreenNote Launches "GreenNote Network" to Help Students Connect with More Lenders
| "Our vision is to enable social lending for education that allows the general public to be able to help students secure low-cost loans," said Akash Agarwal, CEO and Founder of GreenNote. "The GreenNote Network is designed to give people an opportunity to support and invest in the education of others." |
June 04, 2008
GreenNote Launches Social Network-Based Student Loan Program
| "GreenNote (www.greennote.com) launched a service today that enables students to obtain low-cost student loans from family, friends or anyone interested in helping the student." |
