A startup aimed at student loan borrowers who have more time than money claims to have helped eliminate more than $100,000 in student loan debt through its platform.
Gradible connects borrowers with businesses that pay users for small-scale tasks--but not in cash. Instead, Gradible pays in "LoanCreds," which, when redeemed, pay the user's student loan directly.
"Student loan debt is incurred upon the normal path that people are told they should take to expand their opportunities," Gradible co-founder Pete Wylie said. "A lot of people we spoke to found that that wasn't exactly how things worked out for them."
Though Wylie acknowledged that the problem of student loan debt is systemic, he said supplementing people's incomes could help.
"The real problem was lack of repayment alternatives, lack of ability to accelerate or increase the amount [borrowers] were paying every month while also having a fulfilling life outside of work," he said.
Users can write blog posts, use social media or do research for Gradible clients, which mainly are small companies looking for a flexible, educated workforce. Wylie declined to name companies specifically.
So far, Wylie said, about 5,000 users have signed up to do online odd jobs. Most of them, according to the Gradible website, already have full-time jobs and do Gradible work on the side.
The concept is similar to TaskRabbit, or even Craigslist, but the idea of doing odd jobs on the side is far older than the iStonternet. Paying directly to a loan servicer simply streamlines the process, Wylie said.
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