People Capital

People Capital in the Media

Meet the People Behind People Capital

We are pleased to provide the following links to coverage of People Capital in the media.

People Capital provides the following list of resources as a service to its visitors. People Capital is not responsible for the content on the Web sites maintained by third parties nor do the links to these third-party Web sites imply or constitute an endorsement of the information contained therein. People Capital is not responsible for reviewing the information contained in these Web sites and can not ensure the accuracy of their content.

Get Schooled in Private Student Loans

Foxbusiness.com (June 28, 2010)

Al Alper, president of People Capital, says the first thing families need to do is determine exactly what much aid is needed. He advises to be conservative in your wants, and borrow only the necessary amount. “Private student loans are a terrific option to provide access to an education you would not otherwise have, but, like any financial decision they have long-term effects on your lifestyle, and the amount you have to repay will determine what other items you may be able to afford,” Alper says.

7 Ways Private Student Loans Are Getting Better

US News & World Report (June 21, 2010)

At People Capital's new anonymous student loan auction site, lenders only see financial and academic information, without knowing the name of the borrower. The bidder with the lowest interest rate wins the right to lend the student money.

A New Source for Student Loans

The New York Times: Bucks Blog (Mar 15, 2010)

Earlier this month, the online student loan Web site People Capital began a peer-to-peer student loan service that matches students looking for loans directly with potential lenders, including individual lenders, and takes financial institution brokers out of the loan-finding equation.

People Capital Launches Peer Lending Platform for Qualified Education Loans

Social Funds (Feb 24, 2010)

Last month, SocialFunds.com spoke with Tom Shelton, CEO and founder of People Capital, about the company’s beta launch of a peer lending student loan platform. Peer-to-peer lending can be viewed as a form of microfinance, an equation from which the intermediary of a traditional financial institution is removed. By providing direct loans in such socially beneficial areas as higher education, social investors can realize their community investing mission.

With credit drying up, where can you turn for student loans?

Walletpop (Feb 17, 2010)

If you read a lot of personal finance articles, you've probably heard about Prosper and some of the other lending sites that offer a way for you to get a loan from a peer. Regular investors can invest in someone else's goal of homeownership or business startup. People Capital takes that idea and makes it all about lending to students who want to go to college. If that concept appeals to you, it's worth checking out.

An Interview with People Capital: P2P Lending for Education Finance

Transcapitalist (Feb 9, 2010)

The limitations of the current credit risk modeling approach – the FICO score – are manifold, but nowhere are they more glaring than the complete inability of FICO to evaluate young people. A system based entirely on prior payment history discriminates against youth who are just entering the financial world. For students seeking to continue their education, and needing loans to get there, the consequences are severe – automatically labeling as a credit risk may shut them out of the private loan market and prevent them from attaining higher degrees, regardless of their potential. Around this striking weakness of the current education finance market is where People Capital, a p2p student loan platform, is seeking to innovate.

Prosper Marketplace and People Capital Announce Partnership

American Banking News (Jan 5, 2010)

Prosper Marketplace and People Capital have announced that the two companies formed a new referral partnership in which both companies will provide each other referral leads when their counterparts service might be better suited for the borrower.

Human Capital Score – An Idea of Your Worth

EveryJoe.com (December 24, 2009)

With the New Year staring us in the face, you may have a student at home that’s looking at making those final decisions for college. Part of that decision is how you’re going to pay for that college education.

Q&A with Alan Samuels, Chief Product Officer, People Capital

Today's Campus (formerly Greentree Gazette) (December 21, 2009)

In most of today's loan comparison sites, borrowers can find lenders and loans. In the model Alan Samuels and his firm are launching, it will work both ways - with lenders able to find borrowers as well.

Taking the Gamble Out of Student Loans

Washington Monthly (December 17, 2009)

The “value” of a college diploma has always been a little vague, at least in part because the investment and the potential return on investment are so far removed. But, from the Wall Street Journal comes news that with the economy being what it is, many parents and students are now considering the value of a diploma in direct, dollars and cents, terms ... Nevertheless, there’s now an online calculator available to help people make decisiosn about college cost. HumanCapitalScore.com, is a tool created by People Capital, New York that predicts how much money someone will make based on SAT scores, college attended, and grades earned. HumanCapitalScore gives a student ten year projections based on college choices.

College degree: Look at costs vs. benefits

MSN money (December 16, 2009)

The WSJ wrote about a new tool that predicts how much a student is likely to earn the first 10 years after graduation, based on test scores, high school and college attended, grades and field of study. The online calculator, HumanCapitalScore.com, will do the calculations based on several scenarios.

Weighing the Value of That College Diploma

Wall Street Journal (Dec 16, 2009)

For parents who want to refine the cost-to-income analysis, a new tool is available that predicts how much money a student is likely to make after graduating. The online calculator, HumanCapitalScore.com, will generate a 10-year range of students' likely postgraduation income based on their test scores, high school and college attended, grades and major.

The Best Route to a Rich Retirement

CBS MoneyWatch (Dec 7, 2009)

By far the most momentous decisions you make in building human capital are when you’re young. Projecting off estimates by People Capital, which tracks workers’ earnings history by college and by major, a student’s decision to major in a low-demand field like English rather than a higher-demand one like bio-engineering, might vaporize the equivalent of $700,000 on the spot.

Top 10 tips for college planning

AOL's Walletpop (Nov 25, 2009)

College Planning Tip #10: Peer to peer loans. Person to person lending, or P2P is another option for college planning, cash strapped parents. You request a loan on a P2P site, and an individual lender or a group of lenders may provide the loan at an interest rate set by the site. Some P2P sites have student loan niches, while other sites focus solely on student loans.

People Capital Offers a New Student Score to Rival FICO

SpendOnLife.com (Oct 27, 2009)

FICO schmico. Credit scores have long proven an obstacle for students trying to get private loans. But now, there's a new score in town specifically designed for students. The Human Capital Score from People Capital doesn't assess students based on their credit history (which is often non-existent), but rather on factors like their school, major, and GPA. Your Human Capital Score can hook you up with good loans from quality lenders to cover expenses that government funding and part-time jobs just aren't covering.

Peer to peer lending: So crazy it works

Thrive (Oct 19, 2009)

People Capital is different because it exclusively matches up student-borrowers with cream-of-the-crop lenders. Since most college students haven’t had time or knowledge to build up good history, People Capital projects a Human Capital Score after dissecting and analyzing GPA’s, standardized test scores, along with the borrower’s college and major to determine their ability to pay the loan back.

People Capital – Peer-to-Peer Lending for Student Loans

American Banking News (Sep 8, 2009)

People Capital hopes to provide an alternative market place so that students can get financing for their college education. Many college students have had a hard time getting educational loans through Prosper and Lending Club because they do not have much credit. People Capital rates students on a “human capital” score to determine the credit worthiness based on the student’s GPAs, standardized test scores, college and major to provide a “true and unbiased, data-driven measure of the economic value of an education”.

529 ways to pay for college

The News & Observer (Sep 6, 2009)

If those avenues are closed to you, some students turn to peer lending Web sites. People Capital ( www.people2capital .com ) has a scoring system that evaluates the credit risk of each student before you sign on to give them a loan.

An Alternative To Student Loans?

Forbes (August 26, 2009)

Unlike traditional private loans, which are mainly based on a borrower's credit score, peer-to-peer loans may get up close and personal. That's the approach of People Capital, a peer-to-peer lender based in New York City that uses what it calls a Human Capital Score.

Peer-To-Peer Student Lending: Still In The Early Innings

Student Lending Analytics Blog (August 26, 2009)

Meanwhile, People Capital appears ready to launch ... Their business model has two unique characteristics: bringing institutional investors into the market (i.e. investors with large sums of money) and assessing borrower risk through a proprietary model they call their Human Capital Score. ... Given the limitations of the peer-to-peer models in operation today, People Capital's incipient launch may presage whether peer-to-peer becomes a long-term, sustainable and significant alternative to the private student loan market or remains a relatively minor niche. Stay tuned...

Free Student Loan Calculator

College Finance 101 (August 26, 2009)

Now more than ever, your credit score plays a vital role in determining not only how much loan money you will receive, but also IF you will receive loan money. People Capital, an online student loan lending platform has developed a new free web calculator.

College Grad Crystal Ball: What You Will Earn

MAINSTREET powered by TheStreet.com (August 25, 2009)

One loan company is using a new online calculator to judge a student's credit worthiness, the Human Capital Score, which factors mostly academic data such as your high school, SAT score, college, grade point average and academic major. The new rating system comes courtesy of People Capital, a matchmaker for non-institutional lenders (think peer lenders) and borrowers, whose Human Capital Score projects your potential annual income each year for up to 10 years after graduation.

Student loan risk is typically calculated looking from the present into the past

Today's Campus (formerly Greentree Gazette) (August 17, 2009)

Student loan risk is typically calculated looking from the present into the past. Present earnings. Present indebtedness. Past payment history. For many college students, the credit present is fresh, and the past is not at all meaningful. So People Capital is promoting usage of a Human Capital Score. It calculates future income potential based on variables such as GPA, standardized test scores, college attended and major chosen.

Can you afford that student loan? Calculate what you'll make after school

StarTribune.com (August 3, 2009)

Here's a potentially valuable tool that I wish had been around when I was in college: the Human Capital Score. The score was designed to assess whether students are taking on too much risk by taking out too many student loans than they can afford. When I was in school, there was little talk about how a major would lead to a career path. And there was no discussion about potential salaries. I fear this is probably still the case, which is why so many students take on unrealistic amounts of debt that they're burdened with for decades.

People2Capital.com: Poised to Issue P2P Student Loans This Fall

Prosper Lending Review (July 16, 2009)

I had the opportunity to hold an email interview with Alan Samuels, Chief Product Officer at People Capital this past week regarding their new P2P student loan platform. People Capital will be launching this fall, first to institutional accredited investors under a private placement memorandum, and later they’ll be filling a S-1 to open their platform to all prospective peer to peer lenders.

Startup Spotlight: People Capital brings peer-to-peer lending to student loans

VentureBeat: Startup Spotlight (July 15, 2009)

People Capital has entered the burgeoning peer-to-peer lending business - alongside the likes of Prosper and Lending Club - only it plans to focus on student loans.

People Capital Launches Peer-To-Peer Student Loans

VentureWire (July 9, 2009)

People Capital, hoping to bring peer-to-peer lending to student loans, has raised $500,000 in a second tranche, bringing Series B funding to $2 million total. The latest tranche was led by Serious Change fund, which is headed by investor Josh Mailman. The first tranche of $1.5 million was led by Radcliff Group Inc., a family private equity fund. People Capital previously raised $500,000 in seed funding.

People Capital Nets Series B Venture Capital Funding

VentureDeal (July 9, 2009)

Internet company People Capital has raised $500,000 in a second round of venture capital financing. People Capital helps students find lending sources using merit data such as GPA, standardized test scores, college and major information.

People Capital gets $500K for p2p loans

vatornews (July 9, 2009)

The Web is first and foremost about connecting people around the world: friends with friends, sellers with buyers, and, now, lenders with students in need of loans.People Capital, a peer-to-peer platform that networks students with sources of college funding, announced this week the closing of a $500,000 round of Series B funding. This latest round, led by investor Josh Mailman, comes just four months after People Capital secured additional funding from private equity firm Radcliff Group Inc.

What�s Your Human Capital Score?

bizzia.com (July 9, 2009)

One of the main complaints many students have when looking to close the college funding gap have is that it is increasingly difficult for them to get approved for private loans . People Capital is hoping to help students by providing a metric that can help lenders get an idea of a student's potential through a Human Capital Score.

College students, what's your earning potential?

MSN money (July 7, 2009)

What can you expect to earn after graduating with a bachelor's degree in history from Podunk U? Would that income increase if you had the same degree from an Ivy League school? How about if you had a journalism or engineering degree?

Student Loan Exchange Raises Series B

Private Equity Hub (July 7, 2009)

People Capital, an online lending exchange for student loans, has raised $500,000 in Series B funding led by The Serious Change fund.

Knowing Your $$$ Limit$: New Calculator Helps Students

Higher Education News & Trends (July 7, 2009)

Are you taking out too many student loans for college? Will I be able to pay back my student loans after graduating with a B.A. in Art? To help answer these questions the folks at People Capital created a free web calculator, that will help college bound students (and their parents) assess the ability to pay back a student loan and projects their future income potential, providing an alternative to traditional FICO scores.

How much will you be worth, college student?

Christian Science Monitor (July 6, 2009)

You have an SAT score of 2000 and are studying art at Yale University in New Haven, Conn. Expect to make about $33,200 the year after you graduate. Not thrilled? Raise your SAT 100 points and opt instead for engineering at Georgia Tech in Atlanta, and you can look forward to a $41,219 first-job-out-of-college salary. At least so says a new "Human Capital Score" calculator designed by People Capital.

Big board for student loan startup People Capital

TheDeal.com (June 30, 2009)

With advice from M&A veterans such as Merrill Lynch & Co.'s former COO of Americas investment banking, Colbert Narcisse, and Ken Kharbanda, AOL LLC's former head of corporate development, startup People Capital is looking to address a growing problem in the U.S. resulting from the economic crisis. The firm is a New York-based online student lending platform launching later this year.

Two new scores that could affect you

Examiner.com (June 30, 2009)

The second score you should know about is very new - in fact, it's still in public beta - but the company that created it will be launching their site in fall 2009. It's the Human Capital ScoreTM (or HCS) and it was devised by People Capital primarily as a metric to help investors who want to lend in the P2P college loan space. Essentially, it takes input such as test scores, GPA (high school or undergrad), choice of major and college and reports back 2-year and 8-year projected mean incomes. The HCS is very different than the FICO 08, because a FICO score is based on actual payment history and the quantifiable details of a person's particular credit history. The HCS is not based on a student's payment history or length of history, since most students have no real history - but instead is based on academic history, achievements and choices.

Peer-to-Peer Sites Offer College Loans

Foxbusiness.com (June 23, 2009)

Parents or students scrambling for college money may want to consider person-to-person lending, also known as P2P lending, peer-to-peer lending and social lending. In P2P lending, a borrower requests a loan on a P2P lending Web site. Depending on the site, either an individual lender or a group of lenders agrees to loan the money in exchange for an interest payment.

Calculating Potential

Educated Nation | Higher Education Blog (June 11, 2009)

Setting really far over to the side the fact that I think everyone (even the humans I don’t particularly want to hang out, drink coffee, and chat about politics with) is entitled to an affordable college education, here’s a new take on calculating students loan factors. U.S. News and World Report has a piece about the different tools available for students to use for figuring out their potential future earnings and what that might mean vis-á-vis paying back their student loans.

How Much Money Should I Borrow for College?

US News & World Report (June 9, 2009)

Thousands of college students have borrowed too much and doomed themselves to lives of big bills and collectors' calls. But thousands, perhaps millions, of other Americans have been so scared of debt that they've avoided or quit college altogether and likewise doomed themselves to financial struggles. The research is clear: A bachelor's degree, while no guarantee of success, is often a credential needed to win a good job, a raise, a promotion, or even employer-provided health insurance.

Interview with Tom Shelton, CEO, People Capital

Countdown to College Radio (May 15, 2009)

Countdown to College Radio is a weekly one-hour show dedicated to helping college-bound high school students and their families understand the process of getting ready for–and getting into–college. Show host Beth Pickett interviews experts on the college application process, high school coursework, summer opportunities, extracurricular activities, application essays, standardized testing, financial aid, and college options, with the occasional foray into how to maintain a healthy and positive attitude throughout what can be a very stressful process. People Capital Founder & CEO, Tom Shelton was a guest and had the opportunity to talk about People Capital and P2P Lending.

Listen to the interview

Peer to Peer Lending: An Alternative Asset Class?

Seeking Alpha (May 11, 2009)

Last year was brutal for almost all assets classes across all markets. Investors who diversified still had sizable losses. Many investors have pulled in their horns and moved to safe assets like cash or treasuries. Savvy investors have been trying to navigate the myriad opportunities offered in today’s markets – ideally enhancing returns without the risk of another 2008. I attended the Finovate Startup 2009 conference in San Francisco last week and was excited and impressed by some of the companies trying to create alternative asset classes by cutting banks out of the lending loop.

Presentation at FinovateStartup09

FinovateStartup09 (April 28, 2009)

People Capital was one of a select group of startups at FinovateStartup09. It was a great event, featuring exciting demos of the latest innovations in banking and financial technology.

View the demo

Interview with Al Alper, President, People Capital

Greenwich Entrepreneur Show (March 18, 2009)

Based in Greenwich, CT, the Belray Community provides a forum for business leaders and entrepreneurs to share their business experience and learn from their peers. People Capital President, Al Alper was a guest and had the opportunity to talk about People Capital and education finance.

Listen to the interview

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Industry Insights

People Capital announces new solution for the student loan marketplace

Over the last 2 years, People Capital has made great strides in developing innovative and critical solutions for the student loan marketplace. This week, I am excited to update you on the developments of our relationship with Access to Money, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: AEMI) (“ATM”). They are a cash management company (with over 13,000 ATM’s) and [...]

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People Capital

People Capital in the Media

Meet the People Behind People Capital

Get Schooled in Private Student Loans Foxbusiness.com (June 28, 2010)

7 Ways Private Student Loans Are Getting Better US News & World Report (June 21, 2010)

A New Source for Student Loans The New York Times: Bucks Blog (Mar 15, 2010)

People Capital Launches Peer Lending Platform for Qualified Education Loans Social Funds (Feb 24, 2010)

With credit drying up, where can you turn for student loans? Walletpop (Feb 17, 2010)

An Interview with People Capital: P2P Lending for Education Finance Transcapitalist (Feb 9, 2010)

Prosper Marketplace and People Capital Announce Partnership American Banking News (Jan 5, 2010)

Human Capital Score – An Idea of Your Worth EveryJoe.com (December 24, 2009)

Q&A with Alan Samuels, Chief Product Officer, People Capital Today's Campus (formerly Greentree Gazette) (December 21, 2009)

Taking the Gamble Out of Student Loans Washington Monthly (December 17, 2009)

College degree: Look at costs vs. benefits MSN money (December 16, 2009)

Weighing the Value of That College Diploma Wall Street Journal (Dec 16, 2009)

The Best Route to a Rich Retirement CBS MoneyWatch (Dec 7, 2009)

Top 10 tips for college planning AOL's Walletpop (Nov 25, 2009)

People Capital Offers a New Student Score to Rival FICO SpendOnLife.com (Oct 27, 2009)

Peer to peer lending: So crazy it works Thrive (Oct 19, 2009)

People Capital – Peer-to-Peer Lending for Student Loans American Banking News (Sep 8, 2009)

529 ways to pay for college The News & Observer (Sep 6, 2009)

An Alternative To Student Loans? Forbes (August 26, 2009)

Peer-To-Peer Student Lending: Still In The Early Innings Student Lending Analytics Blog (August 26, 2009)

Free Student Loan Calculator College Finance 101 (August 26, 2009)

College Grad Crystal Ball: What You Will Earn MAINSTREET powered by TheStreet.com (August 25, 2009)

Student loan risk is typically calculated looking from the present into the past Today's Campus (formerly Greentree Gazette) (August 17, 2009)

Can you afford that student loan? Calculate what you'll make after school StarTribune.com (August 3, 2009)

People2Capital.com: Poised to Issue P2P Student Loans This Fall Prosper Lending Review (July 16, 2009)

Startup Spotlight: People Capital brings peer-to-peer lending to student loans VentureBeat: Startup Spotlight (July 15, 2009)

People Capital Launches Peer-To-Peer Student Loans VentureWire (July 9, 2009)

People Capital Nets Series B Venture Capital Funding VentureDeal (July 9, 2009)

People Capital gets $500K for p2p loans vatornews (July 9, 2009)

What�s Your Human Capital Score? bizzia.com (July 9, 2009)

College students, what's your earning potential? MSN money (July 7, 2009)

Student Loan Exchange Raises Series B Private Equity Hub (July 7, 2009)

Knowing Your $$$ Limit$: New Calculator Helps Students Higher Education News & Trends (July 7, 2009)

How much will you be worth, college student? Christian Science Monitor (July 6, 2009)

Big board for student loan startup People Capital TheDeal.com (June 30, 2009)

Two new scores that could affect you Examiner.com (June 30, 2009)

Peer-to-Peer Sites Offer College Loans Foxbusiness.com (June 23, 2009)

Calculating Potential Educated Nation | Higher Education Blog (June 11, 2009)

How Much Money Should I Borrow for College? US News & World Report (June 9, 2009)

Interview with Tom Shelton, CEO, People Capital Countdown to College Radio (May 15, 2009)

Peer to Peer Lending: An Alternative Asset Class? Seeking Alpha (May 11, 2009)

Presentation at FinovateStartup09 FinovateStartup09 (April 28, 2009)

Interview with Al Alper, President, People Capital Greenwich Entrepreneur Show (March 18, 2009)