What Student Borrower Protection Center does

Student Borrower Protection Center, operating as Protect Borrowers, is a U.S. nonprofit advocacy organization founded in 2018 by former Consumer Financial Protection Bureau officials, including Executive Director Mike Pierce and co-founder Seth Frotman. Its core function is to protect student loan borrowers and, more recently under its rebrand, a broader set of working borrowers through policy advocacy, investigative research, direct litigation, and coalition mobilization across a network of 550+ labor, civil rights, consumer, and student organizations.

The organization delivers outcomes through ten interconnected program areas covering federal student loan advocacy (PSLF, IDR, borrower defense, closed school discharge, TPD, joint consolidation), federal loan servicing abuse monitoring (MOHELA, Navient, Nelnet, Aidvantage/Maximus, PHEAA), default and collections reform, incarcerated borrower relief, predatory lending and private credit, workplace debt and labor exploitation (TRAPs, non-competes), free college, racial and economic justice, public corruption, and state and local projects including a Cities Partnership. Service delivery is enabled by a distributed team based in Washington DC, Atlanta, Boston, Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore, supported by external co-counsel (Berger Montague PC, Selendy Gay PLLC), a research and reports library, a Congressional casework tool, and FOIA-driven data acquisition.

Protect Borrowers does not sell a technology product and charges no fees to borrowers; it is funded through donations, grants, and partnerships. Reported customer-side outcomes include $188.8 billion in debt cancellation secured for 5.3 million borrowers across Biden-era executive actions, $78.5 billion in PSLF restoration for over one million public service workers, suspension of payments for 40 million borrowers, and driving predatory lenders out of the market. It is currently a lead plaintiff or co-counsel in active federal litigation against the Department of Education, MOHELA, and the McMahon-led administration, positioning the organization at the center of an escalating legal and policy confrontation over the future of federal student loan programs.

Name

Student Borrower Protection Center

Legal name

Student Borrower Protection Center

Website

https://protectborrowers.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Protect Borrowers (formerly Student Borrower Protection Center) is a U.S. nonprofit founded in 2018 by former CFPB officials that uses litigation, policy advocacy, research, and a 550+ organization coalition to protect student loan borrowers and, increasingly, broader working borrowers from abusive servicing and predatory lending.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Consumer Advocacy Services

NAICS

Activities Related to Credit Intermediation (5223), Credit Intermediation and Related Activities (522)

SIC

Personal Credit Institutions (6141), Services-Consumer Credit Reporting, Collection Agencies (7320)

akta.pro primary industry

Student Loan Advisory & Repayment Assistance (FSAEAFAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Collections, Delinquency Management & Bad Debt Recovery (EDALAJAG), Student Account Holds, Appeals, Exceptions & Customer Service (EDALAJAL)

Keywords

• Student loan advocacy
• Borrower protection
• Consumer debt policy
• Nonprofit litigation
• Debt relief advocacy

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Nonprofit Operations: Protect Borrowers operates as a nonprofit organization funded through donations, grants, and partnerships. The organization does not charge borrowers for services and relies on public support and foundation funding to sustain advocacy efforts.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Student Borrower Protection Center (doing business as Protect Borrowers) is a nonprofit advocacy organization that protects student loan borrowers and working families through policy advocacy, litigation, investigative research, and coalition building. It engages in federal and state legislative advocacy, files lawsuits against predatory loan servicers, conducts investigations, delivers Congressional testimony, and provides resources and toolkits for borrowers and policymakers. All services are provided free of charge to borrowers and the public.

Product overview

Protect Borrowers (formerly Student Borrower Protection Center) is a nonprofit advocacy organization that offers a comprehensive suite of policy advocacy, research, litigation support, and resource services focused on protecting student loan borrowers. The organization operates across multiple interconnected program areas including federal student loans advocacy, predatory lending and private credit, workplace debt exploitation, racial and economic justice, and state/local initiatives. Rather than a traditional product-platform architecture, the organization functions as a coordinated advocacy ecosystem with core focus areas in debt relief delivery, loan servicing abuse monitoring, default prevention, incarcerated borrower support, and regulatory oversight. Key offerings include investigative reports, Congressional casework tools, legislative toolkit resources, and direct legal/advocacy support for affected borrower populations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Federal Student Loans Advocacy Policy advocacy and investigation work focused on federal student loan programs including Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), Income-Driven Repayment (IDR), Total and Permanent Disability Discharge, Borrower Defense, Closed School Discharge, and Joint Consolidation loan separation.
• Delivering Debt Relief Research, advocacy, and coalition work to help secure debt cancellation for borrowers through programs like PSLF and IDR, including a national coalition that called on President Biden to deliver broad-based debt cancellation.
• Federal Loan Servicing Abuse Monitoring Investigation and exposure of abusive practices by student loan servicers including MOHELA, Navient, Nelnet/Great Lakes, Aidvantage/MAXIMUS, PHEAA, and ACS, including white labeling practices.
• Default and Collections Advocacy Work to expose and end abusive federal student loan debt collection tactics, including Treasury Offset Program, Social Security benefit seizures, and wage garnishment practices.
• Incarcerated Borrower Relief Investigation and advocacy for incarcerated individuals facing barriers to managing federal student debt, including FOIA litigation to obtain data on incarcerated borrower experiences.
• Predatory Lending and Private Credit Advocacy Work addressing shadow student debt, private student lending, surveillance credit and big tech financial products, scam schools, for-profit colleges, and online program managers.
• Workplace Debt and Labor Exploitation Advocacy Advocacy against stay-or-pay contracts, Training Repayment Agreement Provisions (TRAPs), non-competes, and other employer-driven debt mechanisms.
• Racial and Economic Justice Work to protect marginalized communities from loan industry mistreatment, including educational redlining, and focused advocacy for older borrowers, women, Black borrowers, Latino/a borrowers, LGBTQ+ borrowers, incarcerated borrowers, veteran borrowers, and NCSLT-affected populations.
• State and Local Projects Support for state and local efforts including legislative advocacy, regulatory advocacy, law enforcement engagement, state research, student debt in the South initiatives, and the Cities Partnership program.
• Resources and Litigation Support Comprehensive resources including reports, letters and memos, public comments, testimony and remarks, deep dives, legislative toolkits, polling data, investigations, FOIA requests, fact sheets, lawsuits, and amicus briefs.
• Congressional Casework Tool Tool enabling borrowers to contact their senators or representatives to request casework assistance with federal student loan issues or student loan servicer problems.

Quantifiable outcome

• Secured $188.8 billion in debt cancellation for 5.3 million borrowers
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

15 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• University of California Student Loan Law InitiativecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Mike Pierce co-founded the Student Loan Law Initiative at University of California, the nation's only academic center focused solely on student debt and the law. This partnership advances legal scholarship and advocacy on student loan issues.
• National Consumer Law Center (NCLC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOngoing collaboration on IDR waiver proposals, joint investigations into servicing abuses, and co-filing of legal briefs. NCLC's Student Loan Borrower Assistance Project works closely with SBPC on borrower defense efforts.
• American Federation of Teachers (AFT)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint investigations into PSLF mismanagement, co-filing of lawsuits against MOHELA, and coordinated advocacy campaigns. AFT is a 1.8 million-member teachers' union representing public service workers.
• Communications Workers of AmericacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint investigation with SBPC into Maximus, the world's largest student loan company, exposing systemic mismanagement and abuse by the federal contractor.
• Berger Montague PCmajorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCo-counsel in landmark consumer protection lawsuit against MOHELA filed on behalf of AFT. The law firm provides litigation support and legal expertise.
• Selendy Gay PLLCmajorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCo-counsel in the AFT v. MOHELA lawsuit, bringing consumer protection expertise to the litigation.
• SpousalConsolidation.DoUsPartcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGrassroots partnership with organization representing borrowers who have Joint Consolidation Loans. Working together to push for full implementation of the Joint Consolidation Loan Separation Act.
• DēmosmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint conference on student debt cancellation and collaborative reports on delivering debt relief, including 'Delivering on Debt Relief: Proposals, Ideas, and Actions to Cancel Student Debt'.
• Center for Responsible LendingmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on IDR restoration proposals and joint advocacy for policy reforms to protect student loan borrowers.
• The Century FoundationmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint reports on household debt including auto loan debt analysis and credit card debt research. Julie Margetta Morgan, President of The Century Foundation, serves on the Advisory Board.
• Debt CollectiveminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAstra Taylor, Founder of Debt Collective, serves on the Advisory Board, representing ongoing relationship with debtor advocacy organization.
• Justice CatalystminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBen Elga, Executive Director of Justice Catalyst, serves on Advisory Board. Justice Catalyst Law has represented borrowers in debt collection lawsuits.
• Project on Predatory Student LendingmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEileen Connor, President and Director, serves on Advisory Board. Organization provides legal representation to defrauded students and has collaborated on borrower defense cases.
• National Council of NonprofitscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLead plaintiff in National Council of Nonprofits et al. v. McMahon lawsuit challenging Trump Administration's weaponization of PSLF, representing cities, unions, and civil society organizations.
• Americans for Financial ReformcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLisa Donner, Executive Director, serves on Advisory Board. Organization coordinates broad coalition advocacy on financial reform issues including student debt.

Scale indicators16 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• National Consumer Law Center: Nonprofit consumer law organization and core SBPC partner that jointly advocates on student loan issues including IDR waiver proposals, borrower defense, and co-files legal briefs. Operates the Student Loan Borrower Assistance Project and shares overlapping legal/advocacy mission and funding base.
• The Institute for College Access & Success (TICAS): Nonprofit policy and research organization focused on student debt, affordability, and accountability in higher education. Comparable mission and policy-research operating model, though more focused on data/research than litigation.
• Dēmos: Progressive public policy organization that co-authored "Delivering on Debt Relief" with Protect Borrowers. Comparable as a multi-issue think-and-do tank working on debt, economic equity, and racial justice advocacy.
• The Century Foundation: Progressive think tank with which Protect Borrowers has co-published household-debt research; TCF President Julie Margetta Morgan sits on SBPC's Advisory Board. Comparable policy-research orientation with overlapping debt and higher education portfolio.
• Americans for Financial Reform: Coalition advocate coordinating broad financial reform including student debt; Executive Director Lisa Donner serves on Protect Borrowers' Advisory Board. Comparable coalition-building and federal advocacy approach.
• Justice Catalyst: Nonprofit that incubates next-generation public interest lawyers and has represented borrowers in debt collection suits; Executive Director Ben Elga sits on Protect Borrowers' Advisory Board. Comparable legal-advocacy operating model.
• Center for Responsible Lending: Nonprofit research and policy organization focused on predatory lending; collaborates with Protect Borrowers on IDR restoration proposals and joint advocacy for student loan borrower protections. Shares similar policy-advocacy-plus-research operating model.
• National Council of Nonprofits: National network of nonprofits; lead plaintiff in the National Council of Nonprofits et al. v. McMahon lawsuit co-litigated by Protect Borrowers. Comparable as a coalition-driven advocacy organization with overlapping legal strategy on PSLF weaponization.
• Project on Predatory Student Lending: Legal organization providing representation to defrauded students; Eileen Connor sits on Protect Borrowers' Advisory Board. Directly comparable mission focused on student loan borrower protection through litigation.
• Debt Collective: Debtor's union and advocacy organization; founder Astra Taylor serves on Protect Borrowers' Advisory Board. Directly comparable as a borrower-advocacy organization with overlapping member-base engagement.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/theSBPC
• Facebookfacebook.com/protectborrowers
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/student-borrower-protection-center

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Student Borrower Protection Center