Government confirms student loan sell-off
The UK government has confirmed the sale of large part of its student loans portfolio to Erudio Student Loans. The sale relates to students who took out fixed term loans between 1990 and 1998. Such loans are the last of their kind still in public ownership.
The move is step towards selling all of the outstanding student loan book, currently valued at around £40bn, according to Sky News.
The debt sold on Monday is worth £160m and is owed by roughly 250,000 people.
The government, in a statement on Monday, said:
Erudio Student Loans was selected as the successful bidder through a competitive process. Its offer was judged to represent the best value for money for the taxpayer and the price paid exceeds the estimated value to the government of retaining the loans. The private sector is thought best placed to collect the outstanding debt, allowing the Student Loans Company (SLC) to concentrate on administering newer loans.