E*TRADE Bolsters Corporate Services Capabilities Through Purchase of Pioneering Student Loan Benefit Provider Gradifi

E*TRADE Financial Corporate Services, Inc. today announced the addition of financial wellness capabilities through the purchase of student loan benefit and financial wellness provider Gradifi.

Student loan debt is one of the most pervasive challenges facing the workforce today, weighing in at a staggering $1.5 trillion in the third quarter of this year, up by $20 billion since the second quarter.¹

Gradifi takes a holistic approach to these challenges, offering a suite of financial wellness solutions including employer-sponsored student loan paydown and 529 plan contribution solutions, access to student loan refinance options, loan counseling, educational resources, and digital financial planning tools.

“Tackling student debt is vital today if we hope to set employees up for long-term financial success,” said Scott Whatley, President of E*TRADE Corporate Services. “As an industry leader in stock plan administration we play a significant role in helping employers meet the financial needs of their participants, and innovative offerings like Gradifi help us deliver even more firepower to plan sponsors. Beyond Gradifi’s exceptional digital platforms and tools, we are also thrilled to welcome to the E*TRADE family an outstanding team of tech-minded professionals who share our spirit of disruption and laser focus on the customer.”

The deal meaningfully bolsters the E*TRADE Corporate Services offering to include financial wellness and student loan solutions as part of a comprehensive benefits platform. E*TRADE commands an unrivaled position in the stock plan administration space, earning #1 in Loyalty and Overall Satisfaction by stock plan administrators eight years running,² serving two million plan participants, and over 800 publicly traded companies including more than 20 percent of companies within the S&P 500 index.

“We could not be more excited to join such a storied organization, which enjoys a rich legacy of digital disruption and innovation,” said Kate Winget, Chief Revenue Officer of Gradifi. “The prospect of leveraging the diverse resources of E*TRADE to more completely meet the needs of our clients and their employee base is thrilling to say the least, and we look forward to working hand in hand as one team to raise the bar even further for the benefits industry.”