CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Assets
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 1,534,339	$ 1,918,793
Available-for-sale investments at fair value (cost of $247,607 and $211,406, respectively)	244,088	208,603
Loans held for investment (net of allowance for losses of $251,475 and $184,701, respectively)	18,567,641	15,137,922
Restricted cash and investments	101,836	53,717
Other interest-earning assets	21,586	49,114
Accrued interest receivable	967,482	766,106
Premises and equipment, net	89,748	87,063
Tax indemnification receivable	168,011	259,532
Other assets	84,853	52,153
Total assets	21,779,584	18,533,003
Liabilities
Deposits	15,505,383	13,435,667
Long-term borrowings	3,275,270	2,167,979
Income taxes payable, net	102,285	184,324
Upromise member accounts	243,080	256,041
Other liabilities	179,310	141,934
Total liabilities	19,305,328	16,185,945
Commitments and contingencies
Preferred stock, par value $0.20 per share, 20 million shares authorized:
Common stock, par value $0.20 per share, 1.125 billion shares authorized: 443.5 million and 436.6 million shares issued, respectively	88,693	87,327
Additional paid-in capital	1,222,277	1,175,564
Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) (net of tax expense (benefit) of $1,696 and ($5,364), respectively)	2,748	(8,671)
Retained earnings	868,182	595,322
Total SLM Corporation stockholders’ equity before treasury stock	2,581,900	2,414,542
Less: Common stock held in treasury at cost: 11.1 million and 7.7 million shares, respectively	(107,644)	(67,484)
Total equity	2,474,256	2,347,058
Total liabilities and equity	21,779,584	18,533,003
Series A Preferred Stock
Preferred stock, par value $0.20 per share, 20 million shares authorized:
Preferred stock value outstanding	0	165,000
Series B Preferred Stock
Preferred stock, par value $0.20 per share, 20 million shares authorized:
Preferred stock value outstanding	$ 400,000	$ 400,000