The story
In 1988, CEO William A. Hollin (known as Tony Hollin) launched Educational Funding of the South, going by the name Edsouth, the precursor to EdFinancial Services, in Knoxville. With the backing of local underwriters, Hollin spent six years steadily building the company, going bank to bank buying student loans.
In 2004, Edsouth provided student loans mostly in the southeastern US, and had an income of over $150 million.
Instead of marketing predominantly to students like some of its competitors, it used a business-to-business strategy and communicated directly with financial aid administrators. The strategy worked, with a 70% annual growth rate over a five-year period, and an increase from $3 million to $35 million in annual revenue.
In 2002, the company launched eCampusTours.com, which purportedly claims to "allow students to search online for colleges". The website featured 360° by 360° virtual college tours of more than 11,000 college campuses, allowing students to see campus life through IPIX virtual tours.
In 2012, Edfinancial was awarded a contract by the US Dept. of Education to service student loans made under the Federal Direct Student Loan Program.
From Wikipedia’s article on EdFinancial Services, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.3