CFPB to distribute more than $4.7 million to consumers impacted by nationwide student financial aid scam

If you were one of the over 78,000 people who paid College Financial Advisory or Student Financial Resource Center for information on how to pay for college, or to apply for financial aid services, you may receive a check in the mail. Payments will be sent on March 31, 2023, through Epiq Systems. For additional questions, contact info@cfpb-CollegeFinancialAdvisory.org or (855) 535-1825.

Learn more about the case and redress payments

In 2015, the CFPB filed a complaint in federal court against College Financial Advisory and Student Financial Resource Center for illegally charging millions of dollars for sham financial services. Global Financial Support, Inc. is a California corporation owned by Armond Aria that operated under the names College Financial Advisory and Student Financial Resource Center. According to the CFPB complaint, Aria and his businesses sent millions of deceptive solicitation packets to students and their families claiming to apply for financial aid services and to match prospective students with targeted financial aid assistance programs for a fee, and mispresented that students would lose their opportunity to receive financial aid unless they paid the company and applied by a stated deadline. In reality, consumers did not receive what they paid for, while the company reaped millions of dollars from the scheme. Learn more about the enforcement action.

The total distribution amount is $4,737,472.17, and the money will come from the CFPB’s Civil Penalty Fund.