SLM CorpSLM
SLM Corp Debt Disclosure
Borrowings
Outstanding borrowings consist of unsecured debt and secured borrowings issued through our term asset-backed securities (“ABS”) program and our Secured Borrowing Facility. The issuing entities for those secured borrowings are VIEs and are consolidated for accounting purposes. The following table summarizes our secured borrowings at December 31, 2025 and 2024.
| As of December 31, (dollars in thousands) | 2025 | 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Short-Term | Long-Term | Total | Short-Term | Long-Term | Total | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Unsecured borrowings: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Unsecured debt (fixed-rate) | $ | 498,415 | $ | 493,415 | $ | 991,830 | $ | — | $ | 995,420 | $ | 995,420 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total unsecured borrowings | 498,415 | 493,415 | 991,830 | — | 995,420 | 995,420 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Secured borrowings: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Private Education Loan term securitizations: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Fixed-rate | — | 4,174,513 | 4,174,513 | — | 4,617,743 | 4,617,743 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Variable-rate | — | 694,566 | 694,566 | — | 827,182 | 827,182 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total Private Education Loan term securitizations | — | 4,869,079 | 4,869,079 | — | 5,444,925 | 5,444,925 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Secured Borrowing Facility | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total secured borrowings | — | 4,869,079 | 4,869,079 | — | 5,444,925 | 5,444,925 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | $ | 498,415 | $ | 5,362,494 | $ | 5,860,909 | $ | — | $ | 6,440,345 | $ | 6,440,345 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The following table summarizes the outstanding borrowings, the weighted average interest rates at the end of the period and the related average balance during the period. Rates reflect stated interest of borrowings and related discounts and premiums.
| December 31, 2025 | Year Ended December 31, 2025 | December 31, 2024 | Year Ended December 31, 2024 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (Dollars in thousands) | Ending Balance | Weighted Average Interest Rate | Average Balance | Ending Balance | Weighted Average Interest Rate | Average Balance | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Short-term borrowings: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Fixed-rate borrowings | $ | 498,415 | 3.13 | % | $ | 81,906 | $ | — | — | % | $ | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total short-term borrowings | $ | 498,415 | 3.13 | % | $ | 81,906 | $ | — | — | % | $ | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Long-term borrowings: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Floating-rate borrowings | $ | 694,566 | 5.16 | % | $ | 878,606 | $ | 827,182 | 5.71 | % | $ | 724,761 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Fixed-rate borrowings | 4,667,928 | 4.61 | 5,397,548 | 5,613,163 | 4.09 | 4,864,359 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total long-term borrowings | $ | 5,362,494 | 4.68 | % | $ | 6,276,154 | $ | 6,440,345 | 4.30 | % | $ | 5,589,120 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total Borrowings | $ | 5,860,909 | 4.55 | % | $ | 6,358,060 | $ | 6,440,345 | 4.30 | % | $ | 5,589,120 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Our borrowings amortize over time and mature serially from 2026 to 2056. As of December 31, 2025, the maturities of our brokered CDs and borrowings are summarized below.
| As of December 31, 2024 (dollars in thousands) | Brokered CDs | Unsecured Debt | Secured Borrowings(1) | Total | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2026 | $ | 2,506,476 | $ | 498,415 | $ | 779,396 | $ | 3,784,287 | |||||||||||||||
| 2027 | 782,642 | — | 796,817 | 1,579,459 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2028 | 598,636 | — | 685,128 | 1,283,764 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2029 | 683,733 | — | 567,328 | 1,251,061 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2030 | 797,937 | 493,415 | 479,310 | 1,770,662 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2031 and after | — | — | 1,561,100 | 1,561,100 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 5,369,424 | 991,830 | 4,869,079 | 11,230,333 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Hedge accounting adjustments | (73) | — | — | (73) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Total | $ | 5,369,351 | $ | 991,830 | $ | 4,869,079 | $ | 11,230,260 | |||||||||||||||
(1) We view our secured borrowings as long-term based on the contractual maturity dates ranging from 2035 to 2056. However, the actual maturity of our secured borrowings depends on the prepayment speeds of the underlying collateralized loans. To disclose how we expect this debt to pay down over time, the maturities for our secured borrowings are based on the projected bond principal paydowns using the current estimated loan prepayment speeds.
Short-term Borrowings
Unsecured Borrowings Transactions
On November 1, 2021, we issued $500 million of 3.125 percent unsecured Senior Notes due November 2, 2026, at a price of 99.43 percent. At December 31, 2025, the outstanding carrying value, net of deferred financing fees, was $498 million.
Long-term Borrowings
Unsecured Borrowings Transactions
On January 31, 2025, we issued $500 million of 6.50 percent unsecured Senior Notes due January 31, 2030, at a price of 99.78 percent. At December 31, 2025, the outstanding carrying value, net of deferred financing fees, was $493 million.
Secured Borrowings Transactions
The following table summarizes our term ABS fundings issued in the years ended December 31, 2025 and December 31, 2024, in which we retained 100 percent of the residual class certificates, and which are collateralized by pools of Private Education Loans. The transfer of these loans did not qualify for sale treatment and thus remain encumbered on our consolidated balance sheet.
| SMB Private Education Loan Trust | Date Closed | Loans Transferred to the Trust(1) | Notes Issued | Gross Proceeds | Weighted Average Cost of Funds(2) | Weighted Average Life of Class A and Class B Notes (in years) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (Dollars in thousands) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2024-C ABS Transaction | May 15, 2024 | $ | 733,644 | $ | 668,000 | $ | 667,888 | SOFR plus 1.19% | 5.36 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2024-E ABS Transaction | August 14, 2024 | 944,645 | 868,000 | 867,743 | SOFR plus 1.42% | 5.17 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2024-F ABS Transaction | November 6, 2024 | 732,445 | 680,000 | 679,981 | SOFR plus 1.08% | 5.09 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total 2024 | $ | 2,410,734 | $ | 2,216,000 | $ | 2,215,612 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Loans encumbered at December 31, 2025 related to 2024 term ABS: | $ | 2,080,180 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2025-A ABS Transaction | May 07, 2025 | $ | 576,908 | $ | 539,000 | $ | 538,889 | SOFR plus 1.49% | 5.46 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total 2025 | $ | 576,908 | $ | 539,000 | $ | 538,889 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Loans encumbered at December 31, 2025 related to 2025 term ABS: | $ | 545,900 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
(1)Represents principal and capitalized interest.
(2)Represents SOFR equivalent cost of funds for variable and fixed-rate bonds, excluding issuance costs.
Pre-2024 Transactions
Prior to 2024, we executed a total of $11.53 billion in ABS transactions that were accounted for as secured borrowings. At December 31, 2025, $3.93 billion of our Private Education Loans, including $3.81 billion of principal and $116 million in capitalized interest, were encumbered as a result of these transactions.
Secured Borrowing Facility
On June 13, 2025, we amended our Secured Borrowing Facility to increase the amount that may be borrowed under the facility from $2 billion to $2.5 billion and extend the maturity. We hold 100 percent of the residual interest in the Secured Borrowing Facility Trust. The amendment extended the revolving period, during which we may borrow, repay, and reborrow funds, until June 12, 2026. The scheduled amortization period, during which amounts outstanding under the Secured Borrowing Facility must be repaid, ends on June 12, 2027 (or earlier, if certain material adverse events occur). The one-year revolving period plus the one-year amortization period results in a contractual maturity that is two years from the date of inception or renewal. For the years ended December 31, 2025 and December 31, 2024, there were no outstanding borrowings under the Secured Borrowing Facility.
With the Secured Borrowing Facility, we incur financing costs on the unused borrowing capacity and on any outstanding advances. The non-use fee is based upon the Facility’s maximum borrowing limit. For the year ended December 31, 2025, the maximum borrowing limit was $2 billion from January 1, 2025 to June 12, 2025 and $2.5 billion from June 13, 2025 to December 31, 2025. For the year ended December 31, 2024, the maximum borrowing limit was $2 billion. The non-use fee is applied to the unfunded balance. The Facility non-use fee was 55 basis points in both 2025 and 2024.
Consolidated Funding Vehicles
We consolidate our financing entities that are VIEs as a result of our being the entities’ primary beneficiary. As a result, these financing VIEs are accounted for as secured borrowings.
| As of December 31, 2025 (dollars in thousands) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Debt Outstanding | Carrying Amount of Net Assets Securing Debt Outstanding | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Short-Term | Long-Term | Total | Loans | Restricted Cash | Other Assets, Net(1) | Total | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Secured borrowings: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Private Education Loan term securitizations | $ | — | $ | 4,869,079 | $ | 4,869,079 | $ | 6,249,064 | $ | 177,260 | $ | 377,673 | $ | 6,803,997 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Secured Borrowing Facility | — | — | — | — | — | 1,324 | 1,324 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | $ | — | $ | 4,869,079 | $ | 4,869,079 | $ | 6,249,064 | $ | 177,260 | $ | 378,997 | $ | 6,805,321 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| As of December 31, 2024 (dollars in thousands) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Debt Outstanding | Carrying Amount of Net Assets Securing Debt Outstanding | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Short-Term | Long-Term | Total | Loans | Restricted Cash | Other Assets, Net(1) | Total | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Secured borrowings: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Private Education Loan term securitizations | $ | — | $ | 5,444,925 | $ | 5,444,925 | $ | 6,786,390 | $ | 173,892 | $ | 418,705 | $ | 7,378,987 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Secured Borrowing Facility | — | — | — | — | — | 98 | 98 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | $ | — | $ | 5,444,925 | $ | 5,444,925 | $ | 6,786,390 | $ | 173,892 | $ | 418,803 | $ | 7,379,085 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
(1) Other assets, net primarily represents accrued interest receivable and payable.
Unconsolidated Funding Vehicles
Private Education Loan Securitizations
Unconsolidated VIEs include variable interests that we hold in certain securitization trusts created by the sale of our Private Education Loans to unaffiliated third parties. We remained the servicer of these loans pursuant to applicable servicing agreements executed in connection with the sales, and we are also the administrator of these trusts. Additionally, we own five percent of the securities issued by the trusts, as a vertical interest, to meet risk retention requirements. We were not required to consolidate these entities because the fees we receive as the servicer/administrator are commensurate with our responsibility, so the fees are not considered a variable interest. Additionally, the five percent vertical interest we maintain does not absorb more than an insignificant amount of the VIE’s expected losses, nor do we receive more than an insignificant amount of the VIE’s expected residual returns. We classified those vertical risk retention interests related to securitization transactions as available-for-sale investments, except for the interest in the residual class, which we classified as trading investments recorded at fair value with changes recorded through earnings. The following summarizes our Private Education Loan ABS transactions closed in 2024 and 2025 where the respective VIEs were not consolidated.
| SMB Private Education Loan Trust | Date Closed | Loans Transferred to the Trust by Third-Party Seller | Date Third-Party Seller Previously Purchased Loans from the Bank | Additional Loans the Bank Transferred to the Trust(1) | Gain on Sale for Additional Loans Transferred by Bank | ||||||||||||
| (Dollars in thousands) | |||||||||||||||||
2024-A ABS transaction(2) | March 13, 2024 | $ | 1,988,248 | February 1, 2024 | $ | 104,748 | $ | 6,685 | |||||||||
2024-R1 ABS transaction(3) | April 9, 2024 | 68,896 | n/a | — | — | ||||||||||||
2024-B ABS transaction(2) | April 11, 2024 | 191,445 | March 6, 2020 and November 17, 2021 | 10,132 | 35 | ||||||||||||
2024-D ABS transaction(2) | June 28, 2024 | 1,494,953 | May 23, 2024 | 78,782 | 6,051 | ||||||||||||
2025-B ABS transaction(2) | July 17, 2025 | 496,749 | February 6, 2025 | 26,223 | 2,315 | ||||||||||||
2025-C ABS transaction(2) | August 21, 2025 | $ | 1,807,961 | July 30, 2025 | $ | 95,101 | $ | 5,353 | |||||||||
(1)The transfer of such additional loans qualified for sale treatment and removed these loans from our balance sheet on the settlement date of the transaction.
(2)Sallie Mae Bank sponsored the transaction and is the servicer and administrator.
(3)An unaffiliated third party sold to the Trust approximately $69 million of Private Education Loan residual flows from our 2020-PTA and 2020-PTB transactions through a re-securitization. Sallie Mae Bank sponsored the 2024-R1 transaction and is the administrator of the Trust.
The table below provides a summary of our exposure related to our unconsolidated VIEs.
| 2025 | 2024 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| As of December 31, (dollars in thousands) | Debt Interests(1) | Equity Interests(2) | Total Exposure | Debt Interests(1) | Equity Interests(2) | Total Exposure | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Private Education Loan term securitizations | $ | 622,184 | $ | 49,250 | $ | 671,434 | $ | 571,795 | $ | 53,262 | $ | 625,057 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
(1) Vertical risk retention interest classified as available-for-sale investment.
(2) Vertical risk retention interest classified as trading investment.
Other Borrowing Sources
We maintain discretionary uncommitted Federal Funds lines of credit with various correspondent banks, which totaled $125 million at December 31, 2025. The interest rate we are charged on these lines of credit is priced at Fed Funds plus a spread at the time of borrowing and is payable daily. We did not utilize these lines of credit in the years ended December 31, 2025 and 2024.
We established an account at the FRB to meet eligibility requirements for access to the Primary Credit borrowing facility at the FRB’s Discount Window (the “Window”). The Primary Credit borrowing facility is a lending program available to depository institutions that are in generally sound financial condition. All borrowings at the Window must be fully collateralized. We can pledge asset-backed and mortgage-backed securities, as well as Private Education Loans, to the FRB as collateral for borrowings at the Window. Generally, collateral value is assigned based on the estimated fair value of the pledged assets. At December 31, 2025 and December 31, 2024, the value of our pledged collateral at the FRB totaled $2.5 billion and $2.2 billion, respectively. The interest rate charged to us is the discount rate set by the FRB. We did not utilize this facility in the years ended December 31, 2025 and 2024.
Historical Timeline
| Fiscal Year | Filed | |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Feb 19, 2026 | Showing above |
| 2024 | Feb 20, 2025 | |
| 2023 | Feb 22, 2024 | |
| 2022 | Feb 23, 2023 | |
| 2021 | Feb 24, 2022 | |
| 2020 | Feb 25, 2021 | |
| 2019 | Feb 28, 2020 | |
| 2018 | Feb 28, 2019 | |
| 2017 | Feb 23, 2018 | |
| 2016 | Feb 24, 2017 | |
| 2015 | Feb 26, 2016 | |
About Debt Disclosures
Debt disclosures detail a company's borrowing structure — the types of instruments, interest rates, maturity schedule, and covenant restrictions that define its financial obligations and flexibility. This section is essential for assessing refinancing risk, interest rate exposure, and the margin of safety against financial distress.
Key signals: the maturity schedule reveals concentration risk — large maturities within 1-2 years during tight credit markets can force dilutive refinancing or asset sales. Compare the fair value of debt against carrying amount to gauge whether the market views the company's credit risk differently than the balance sheet suggests. Watch covenant compliance disclosures for tightening cushions, especially leverage and interest coverage ratios. Variable-rate debt exposure quantifies sensitivity to interest rate changes. Secured versus unsecured mix affects recovery rates and future borrowing capacity. Compare net debt-to-EBITDA against industry peers and covenant limits to assess financial health.