Summer
Summer is a B2B2C fintech that provides employers, government entities, and unions with an end-to-end student loan and education assistance platform covering loan optimization, employer contributions, and SECURE 2.0 retirement matching for employee borrowers.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2017
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Summer does
Summer, PBC is a New York-based fintech founded in 2017 that operates an end-to-end student loan and education assistance platform sold primarily to employers, government entities, and unions on a B2B2C basis. The platform combines loan synchronization (via Plaid), eligibility matching across 150+ federal and state loan programs, automated form submission to the U.S. Department of Education for PSLF and IDR enrollment, and reporting that tracks forgiveness progress. Its product suite consists of three integrated modules: Summer Save (loan optimization and college savings), Summer Boost (tax-favorable employer student loan contributions processed through OMB Bank), and Summer Secure (SECURE 2.0 student loan retirement match delivered through 401(k) record keepers).
Summer monetizes through per-employee subscription contracts with organizational sponsors rather than charging individual borrowers, with billing described as "a few dollars per person" per month on a subscription cadence. Distribution combines direct enterprise field sales to HR and benefits leaders, a dedicated broker and consultant channel, an ADP partnership that embeds the platform in payroll and HCM, and direct-to-government contracting supported by a Sourcewell cooperative contract. The company reports 1,000+ employer and partner organizations and $2B+ in cumulative borrower savings, with marquee clients spanning food and beverage (fa!rlife), technology and insurance (Asurion), healthcare systems (Hurley Medical Center, Quorum Health), financial institutions (Banc of California, CreditKarma), nonprofits (AFT, Housing Works, Lutheran Social Services), and municipal governments (NYC, City of Alexandria, City of Akron, City of Auburn WA, City of Strongsville OH).
Operationally, Summer is a Certified B Corporation structured as a Public Benefit Corporation with a California DFPI Consumer Finance Lender registration. The company has raised approximately $26M+ in disclosed venture funding across rounds led by QED Investors, Greycroft, General Catalyst, Foundation Capital, NextView, Rebalance Capital, and SemperVirens, and acquired Vault in July 2024. The senior team blends public-sector policy expertise (former CFPB and U.S. Department of Education officials) with consumer fintech experience (ex-SoFi co-founder as President, former Credit Karma Head of Core Product as CPO, former ADP CPO as Chief Innovation Officer).
Summer firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Summer
- Legal name
- Summer, PBC
- Website
- https://meetsummer.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2017
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Summer is a B2B2C fintech that provides employers, government entities, and unions with an end-to-end student loan and education assistance platform covering loan optimization, employer contributions, and SECURE 2.0 retirement matching for employee borrowers.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Summer industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Employee Financial Wellness Platform
- NAICS
- Activities Related to Credit Intermediation (5223), Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities (522320)
- SIC
- Finance Services (6199), Personal Credit Institutions (6141)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Income-Driven & Alternative Repayment Programs (FSAKAEAF)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Veterans, Military & Employer/Third-Party Billing Benefits (EDALAJAJ), Scholarships, Grants & Education Benefits Administration (Financing-adjacent) (FSAKAEAM), Payments, Cashiering & Payment Plans (EDALAJAE)
Keywords
Where Summer is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Summer business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Employer Benefit Subscriptions: Summer charges employers a subscription fee to provide the student loan benefit platform to their employees. The pricing is per-employee or organization-level, with employers paying to offer Summer as part of their benefits package. The company notes 'at the cost of only a few dollars per person' for employers.
- Government Partnership Contracts: Summer enters into contracts with government entities (e.g., NYC partnership) to provide student loan assistance to public servants. These are likely multi-year contract engagements.
- Individual Access (via employers/government): Individual borrowers access Summer through employer or government-sponsored programs at no direct cost to them. The B2B2C model means Summer collects revenue from organizational sponsors rather than individual end users.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Employer benefit subscription - pricing per employee covered |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels6 records
Summer product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Summer provides a digital platform that helps employees and residents optimize student loan repayment and secure forgiveness through federal programs (PSLF, IDR) while enabling employers and government entities to offer student loan contributions and SECURE 2.0 retirement matches. Revenue is generated primarily through per-employee subscriptions paid by employers and government sponsors on behalf of their workforce or constituents. The platform combines loan syncing, eligibility matching, automated form submission, and employer contribution management in a single solution.
Product overview
Summer is a comprehensive workplace student loan and education assistance platform offering three integrated solutions: Summer Save (core platform for loan optimization and forgiveness), Summer Boost (employer contribution and tuition assistance), and Summer Secure (Secure 2.0 retirement match). The platform serves employers, government agencies, and individuals, providing tools for debt reduction, college savings, and financial wellness. Summer partners with organizations like New York City to deliver citywide assistance programs.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Summer Save: Student loan optimization and college savings platform that helps employees lower payments and achieve forgiveness through government repayment programs such as PSLF and IDR.
- Summer Boost
- Summer Secure
Products and services
- Summer Save Flagship student loan optimization and college savings platform that helps employees lower monthly payments and achieve forgiveness through government repayment programs such as PSLF and IDR. Includes educational resources and access to on-demand student loan experts. Targeted at employees of partner employers, public sector workers, and citywide resident programs such as NYC.
- Summer Boost Employer student loan contribution and tuition assistance solution that provides tax-favorable contributions toward employees' past, present, or future education expenses. Includes a centralized hub for tracking and managing loan contribution requests, integrated with OMB Bank for banking services. Used by employers to deliver direct student loan repayment benefits.
- Summer Secure Turn-key student loan retirement match solution enabled by the SECURE 2.0 Act, allowing employers to match employees' student loan payments with 401(k) retirement contributions. Partners with 401(k) plan sponsors and record keepers to deliver the match, enabling borrowers to pay off debt without missing employer retirement contributions. Targeted at employers seeking retirement-linked financial wellness benefits.
- NYC Student Loan Assistance Partnership First-of-its-kind citywide initiative between the City of New York and Summer that provides free student loan assistance and college savings tools to all 8.4 million New York City residents, including 100,000 public servants. Delivers projected $1B in total financial relief, including an estimated $360 million in student loan debt forgiveness and projected $3,000/year reduction in student loan payments plus $10,000/child in college savings.
Quantifiable outcome
- Average $45,000 in savings per eligible borrower
- +6 more outcomes
Companies that use Summer
Customer profileNamed customers15 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Summer technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration6 records
AI capability2 records
Feature5 records
Summer partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, strategic acquisition, major and core.
- City of New YorkflagshipFirst-of-its-kind citywide initiative to help NYC residents save on student loans and college expenses. Partnership to wipe out estimated $360 million in student loan debt for 100,000 public servants. Projected $1B in total financial relief.
- Vaultstrategic acquisitionAsset acquisition of Vault, another student loan benefits provider. Summer Accelerates Growth with Asset Acquisition of Vault (July 2024).
- ADPmajorADP partnered with Summer to support SECURE 2.0 student loan retirement match through ADP's payroll and HCM platform, distributing Summer to ADP's employer customer base.
- Fidelity InvestmentsmajorPartnership to facilitate PSLF applications for Fidelity customers before the waiver expired. Millions of doctors, nurses, and teachers could access Summer through Fidelity Investments service.
- CreditKarmamajorPartnership bringing Summer's student loan solution to CreditKarma's 22 million members. CreditKarma users gained access to Summer's payment relief and loan optimization tools.
- OMB BankcoreBanking services provider for the Employer Student Loan Contribution program. OMB Bank, Member FDIC processes employer-funded loan payments and contributions.
- StripecorePayment processing partner for processing transactions on the Summer platform.
- PlaidcoreIntegration for securely connecting borrower bank accounts and loan servicer data to Summer's platform.
Scale indicators13 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Summer competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Vault: Vault was a direct competitor in the student loan workplace benefits space until Summer acquired its assets in July 2024. It served employers with student loan repayment and refinancing solutions, making it a near-identical peer pre-acquisition.
- Tuition.io: Tuition.io is a direct competitor providing student loan repayment as an employee benefit, with employer contribution management and educational resources — overlapping closely with Summer's Save, Boost, and Secure modules.
- Candidly (formerly Peanut Pay): Candidly provides student debt and college affordability benefits to employers, focused on repayment optimization and education savings — directly comparable to Summer's Save and Boost offerings.
- IonTuition: IonTuition offers student loan wellness and employer contribution programs to HR teams and higher education institutions, competing head-to-head with Summer in the workplace benefit and tuition assistance category.
Broad incumbents
- SoFi: SoFi originated in student loan refinancing and now offers a broad suite of consumer financial products, including workplace benefits. It is a broad incumbent whose loan expertise and brand overlap with Summer's employer value proposition.
- Fidelity Investments: Fidelity is a major 401(k) record keeper and partner to Summer for PSLF facilitation. As a broad incumbent in retirement and benefits, it competes indirectly via employer benefit platforms and could expand native student loan offerings.
- Empower: Empower is a large 401(k) record keeper offering holistic financial wellness to plan sponsors, positioning it as a potential competitor or distribution partner for student loan retirement match features.
- Edfinancial Services: Edfinancial is a federal student loan servicer that interacts with the same PSLF and IDR ecosystem Summer navigates, providing indirect competitive overlap in borrower-facing guidance and repayment support.
Emerging players
- Salary Finance (now part of Totum Money): Salary Finance is a UK-based employee benefits platform offering earned wage access, savings, and education loan repayment — comparable in model (B2B2C employee benefit) but operating in a different geography with overlapping financial wellness positioning.
Regional players
- Advantage Education Loan: Advantage Education Loan is a nonprofit state-based education lender and servicer that supports borrowers in specific U.S. states, making it a regional peer with comparable borrower-assistance capabilities in defined geographies.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Summer social profiles
Digital presenceSummer compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Summer financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Summer leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles10 records
Summer subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Summer funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds12 records
Investors20 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Summer M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Summer
What does Summer do?
Summer provides a digital platform that helps employees and residents optimize student loan repayment and secure forgiveness through federal programs (PSLF, IDR) while enabling employers and government entities to offer student loan contributions and SECURE 2.0 retirement matches. Revenue is generated primarily through per-employee subscriptions paid by employers and government sponsors on behalf of their workforce or constituents. The platform combines loan syncing, eligibility matching, automated form submission, and employer contribution management in a single solution.
Is Summer a public or private company?
Summer is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Summer founded?
Summer was founded in 2017. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Summer based?
Summer is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does Summer make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Employer Benefit Subscriptions are the primary driver. The others are government Partnership Contracts and individual Access (via employers/government).
Who are Summer's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Vault, Tuition.io, Candidly (formerly Peanut Pay) and IonTuition. Broad incumbents are SoFi, Fidelity Investments, Empower and Edfinancial Services. Salary Finance (now part of Totum Money) is listed as an emerging player. Advantage Education Loan is listed as a regional player.
Does Summer have an API?
No public API is recorded for Summer.
What industry is Summer in?
Summer's product category is Employee Financial Wellness Platform. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAKAEAF, Income-Driven & Alternative Repayment Programs, with a secondary code of EDALAJAJ, Veterans, Military & Employer/Third-Party Billing Benefits. Its NAICS code is 5223 and its SIC code is 6199.