Millions of student loan borrowers fell into default earlier this year — and a second wave of delinquencies could be on its way, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said Tuesday. About 1 million borrowers fell into default in the fourth quarter of 2025 and another 2.6 million did the same in the first quarter of this year, Fed researchers wrote in a blog post . The share of overdue student loan balances is returning to pre-pandemic levels as repayments resume after a three-year pause, the researchers said.  Millions of student loan borrowers fell into default early this year. Pixel-Shot – stock.adobe.com About 7.7 million student loan borrowers were in default before the COVID outbreak, according to the Department of Education. The average borrower entering default is around 40 years old and was not past due on their loans prior to the pandemic, according to the blog post. They’re more likely to live in the South, too.…