02/03/2015
Citizens Financial Group hires Melissa Bassett as National Sales Manager, Education Finance
Will lead national sales team for the bank’s Education Finance business
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE: CFG) today announced that Melissa Bassett has been named National Sales Manager for Citizens Education Finance, the bank’s student lending business.
A 20-year veteran of the education finance industry, Bassett will assume leadership of the Education Finance national sales team responsible for student lending products like Citizens’ Education Refinance Loan, which has helped student loan borrowers lower their monthly payments by an average of $145 per month.
“Students today are grappling with the rising cost of college and we are committed to working with them to help them understand their options, while offering a fresh perspective on this marketplace,” said Brendan Coughlin, president of Education and Auto Finance for Citizens Financial Group. “Our Education Finance business is a strategic priority for Citizens and we are expanding our management team to support this growth. With her deep background in education finance, Melissa will be instrumental in driving our ability to meet the increasing demand for our student offerings. We are excited to welcome her to the team.”
Prior to joining Citizens, Bassett was the Senior Vice President, Institutional Sales at Unigo Group, a subsidiary of Aequitas Capital Management, where she successfully lead the national sales effort to distribute college funding solutions to higher education institutions nationally. Bassett also spent several years as the Managing Director National Sales and Marketing for The First Marblehead Corporation and also held position with Citibank, College Loan Corporation and Sallie Mae. Bassett earned her BA from Skidmore College and her MBA from Bentley University.
Detailed information about Citizens student loan products is available on the Citizens Bank website and the Charter One website. As part of its commitment to student loan borrowers through the life of their student loans, Citizens also has a dedicated team of education finance specialists who work with borrowers to make sure they are aware of all of their options. This team can be reached by phone at 1-888-411-0262.
To learn more about Citizens Bank, customers can call the 24/7 customer contact center at 1-800-922-9999, Like the bank on Facebook, follow the bank on Twitter or visit the Citizens Bank website.
About Citizens Financial Group, Inc.
Citizens Financial Group Inc. is one of the nation’s oldest and largest financial institutions, with $131.3 billion in assets as of September 30, 2014. Headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, the company offers a broad range of retail and commercial banking products and services to individuals, small businesses, middle-market companies, large corporations and institutions. Consumer Banking helps its retail customers “bank better” with mobile and online banking, a 24/7 customer contact center and the convenience of approximately 3,200 ATMs and approximately 1,200 Citizens Bank and Charter One branches in 11 states in the New England, Mid-Atlantic and Midwest regions. Citizens also provides mortgage lending, auto lending, student lending and commercial banking services in selective markets nationwide. Citizens Commercial Banking offers corporate, institutional and not-for-profit clients a full range of wholesale banking products and services including lending and deposits, capital markets, treasury services, foreign exchange and interest hedging, leasing and asset finance, specialty finance and trade finance.
Citizens operates via subsidiaries Citizens Bank, N.A., and Citizens Bank of Pennsylvania. Additional information about Citizens and its full line of products and services can be found at www.citizensbank.com.
