Private lenders are tiny part of the market in student loan originations, even a smaller part in undergradatute loans. The federal government is the overwhelmi

Private lenders are tiny part of the market in student loan originations, even a smaller part in undergradatute loans. The federal government is the overwhelmingly dominant player and they set the terms by fiat rather than any kind of market. The “lenders” are the USG, and the cost of capital is only the imputed inflationary effect of transforming a loan into spending. Given the experience of the last decade those inflationary pressures may well be smaller than we had thought.