VIST Financial Partners With CampusDoor's CB Student Help Program to Offer Private Student Loans and Help Customers Pay for College

WYOMISSING, Pa., Aug. 1, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- VIST Financial Corp. (Nasdaq: VIST) announced today that it has partnered with CampusDoor to offer the CB Student HELP Smart Option Student Loan made by Sallie Mae to help their customers meet the rising cost of college while helping them graduate with less debt and pay it off faster after graduation. By simply applying through a secure web site, students can find options available to them to help pay for college expenses not covered by scholarships or federal loans.

"As the cost of attending college continues to rise, we are pleased to partner with Sallie Mae and the CB Student HELP Program to be able to help students and their families within our communities tap into millions of dollars of private educational loans," stated Tina McDonald, Executive Vice President, Chief Retail Banking Officer.

Unlike other longer-term private loan alternatives in which no payments are made until after graduation, with the VIST Financial Smart Option Student Loan, students make payments while in school and graduate with less debt, compared to other longer-term private loan alternatives in which no payments are made until after graduation. With the loan's shorter repayment period, a customer can pay off the loan five to eight years faster after graduation, compared to a standard 15-year interest deferred private student loan. The customer may select either a fixed monthly in-school payment plan or opt to pay interest-only payments while in school. A typical freshman can save 30 to 50 percent on finance charges over the life of the loan.

Designed to supplement a student's federal student loans and other financial aid, the VIST Financial Smart Option Student Loan can help students cover up to 100 percent of their education expenses. The Smart Option Student Loan features market-leading interest rates that reward responsible borrowers as they pursue their graduate or undergraduate degrees. Also available are benefits such as an on-time payment reward and interest rate discounts for enrolling to make automatic payments.

VIST Financial recommends private student loans to help bridge the college financing gap after exploring scholarships, grants and federal student loans. By offering the Smart Option Student Loan, VIST Financial can help its customers pay for necessary college expenses including tuition, room and board, books, and even a computer while building a credit history.

Students may access a secure web site directly through VIST Financial website, www.vistfc.com, apply online and receive a credit result in less than 15 minutes. Applicants may also apply with a creditworthy cosigner in order to help qualify and receive a lower interest rate. Students gain the option to borrow up to 100% of school-certified education costs and can also receive rewards for paying on-time, in addition to 24/7 online account management.  

As part of the CB Student HELP program, CampusDoor will assist with the development and implementation of the loan program, in addition to providing specialized call center support to VIST Financial customers where representatives may be reached at 1-877-458-8285 if assistance or additional information is needed. To offer the Smart Option Student Loan to community banks nationwide, CampusDoor created the CB Student HELP program and partnered with Sallie Mae, the nation's leading saving, planning, and paying for college, company. Since its founding nearly 40 years ago, Sallie Mae has helped more than 31 million people make the investment in a higher education. "Sallie Mae is delighted to partner with VIST Financial and CampusDoor to assist families seeking responsible solutions to make the investment in a college education," commented Jerry Maher, senior vice president, Sallie Mae.

About VIST Financial

VIST Financial is a 101-year-old, diversified financial services company with $1.4 billion in assets and is headquartered in Wyomissing, Berks County, PA. VIST provides trusted advisors in banking, insurance and wealth management to businesses and individuals throughout Berks, Southern Schuylkill, Montgomery, Delaware and Philadelphia Counties. At VIST Financial, our name tells you exactly what you can expect when you do business with us. We built our values – Vision, Integrity, Solutions and Trust – right into the name of our company. Learn more at www.vistfc.com.

About CampusDoor

CampusDoor provides innovative student loan solutions, systems and processing to lenders enabling them to help their customers pay for college. CampusDoor created CB Student Higher Education Loan Program (CB Student HELP) so that community banks can offer private student loans to their customers and help them to achieve their higher education dreams. More information is available online at www.campusdoor.com and www.cbstudenthelp.com.

This release may contain forward-looking statements with respect to the Company's beliefs, plans, objectives, goals, expectations, anticipations, estimates, and intentions that are subject to significant risks and uncertainties, and are subject to change based on various factors, some of which are beyond the Company's control. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking statement, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time by or on behalf of the Company.

SOURCE VIST Financial Corp.