CommonBond was founded to lower the cost of higher education. Our innovative model makes it possible for investors to earn money while allowing students to save money on their student loans.
As a founding team, we have decades of experience in consumer finance, capital markets, and legal regulation. We’re combining our corporate experience with our entrepreneurial passion to make finance better.
David worked in consumer finance at American Express, as Director of Strategic Planning and Business Development, where he led a team that managed a $250M annual portfolio. Prior to American Express, he worked at McKinsey & Company, where he advised clients in the financial services industry. David graduated from Brandeis University with a BA in Politics, Economics, and International Business. He is an alumnus of Wharton Business School and currently sits on the Board of the Bronx Charter School for the Arts in New York.
Mike worked in asset management at J.P. Morgan as a Vice President, where he covered high-net-worth clients and specialized in interest rate and foreign exchange trading. He also worked directly under the Chief Investment Officer of J.P. Morgan Private Bank, constructing the core investment strategy for over $300B in private client assets. Mike graduated summa cum laude from Georgetown University with a BS/BA in Finance & International Business and from the General Course at the London School of Economics. He is an alumnus of Wharton Business School and a CFA Charterholder.
Jessup worked at the law firm of Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson, where she focused on debt private placement. She also worked for J.P. Morgan's Equity Capital Markets group based in Hong Kong, where she covered Korean and Taiwanese clients, helping raise capital in challenging markets. Jessup graduated from Brown University with a liberal arts degree. She also graduated with a JD/MBA degree from Penn Law and Wharton Business School. Jessup is also a Julliard pre-college cellist.
Gareth gained exit experience in the first start-up he joined in Silicon Valley and co-founded another design engineering firm, which still prospers a decade later. Gareth was a founder and member of two successful startups in the financial services sector. Gareth graduated from University College Dublin, Ireland with a BSEE in Electrical Engineering. Gareth is an MBA with Director's List Honors from the Wharton School of Business and holds 3 patents in fields ranging from microchips to dentistry.
Daniel's career has focused on social enterprise, innovation and technology. He began his career as an economic researcher and later led business development efforts for Kiva.org in Latin America. Daniel also has experience working on mobile advertising and payments projects with Google and the World Bank. Daniel has a BA from Tufts University, an MPA from the Harvard Kennedy School, and an MBA from the Wharton School of Business. In a previous life Dan covered the Boston Celtics from press row.
Nathan has spent his career advising start-ups on unique legal challenges. He has a BA in Economics and English from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Nathan received a JD with a concentration in Business and Entrepreneurship from Drexel University's Earle Mack School of Law. While there, he helped found Drexel's Entrepreneurial Law Clinic and worked with Philadelphia VIP to provide mortgage foreclosure advocacy to Philadelphia residents.
Marcus worked at Morgan Stanley as an Investment Banking Associate, where he covered not-for-profit hospitals and health systems structuring bond transactions and interest rate derivative products. Prior to Morgan Stanley, he worked at UBS Investment Bank as an Analyst. Marcus graduated from Yale University with a BA with Distinction in Political Science. He is currently an MBA candidate at Harvard Business School. While at Yale, Marcus studied Viola performance.