Arianna Huffington, is the well known President and Editor-in-Chief of the Huffington Post Media Group. She is also the author of 14 books about life, business and politics.
Arianna joins a board that is already full of well renowned business people. Payoff made headlines last year when Mohamed El-Erian, Former CEO of Pimco joined the board. The involvement of such a revered investment figure gave a huge boost, not just to payoff, but to the industry in general. The participation of these figures helps bring the space into the mainstream and raises the profile of marketplace lending. Other members of the board include, Joe Saunders, former CEO of Visa; Sean Park, Founder and Chairman of Anthemis Group; Jim Lane, former partner at Goldman Sachs; and Scott Saunders, founder and CEO at Payoff.
Scott Saunders, Payoff Founder & CEO, commented:
“Ariana Huffington is one of the most thoughtful people in our country about the American Dream today. She is also one of the most inspirational people, having helped empower countless women, immigrants and entrepreneurs. We are excited that her involvement in Payoff will help us improve the financial lives of millions of Americans, helping Main Streets across the country thrive once again.”
Arianna added:
“I joined the board of Payoff because I believe deeply in the need to reshape the financial services industry. The decline of the American middle class has been a concern of mine for years, and Payoff is committed to offering Americans the financial products, education and inspiration that can improve their lives, while measuring success through the success of its customers.”
Payoff is focused on helping consumers refinance their credit card debt at more affordable rates. Mohamed El-Erian explained the proposition:
“Scott has assembled an incredible team devoted to understanding better why people get themselves into debilitating debt and thus how to help them regain financial viability more quickly.”
Arianna has been very vocal about the problems faced by middle class Americans and how these are compounded by millions getting into credit card debt. She articulated this in her 2011 book, “Third World America: How Our Politicians Are Abandoning the Middle Class and Betraying the American Dream”. Arianna appears to view Payoff and alternative finance as a method to solve this growing problem.
