Lending Club Surpasses More than $255 Million in Loan Originations

Lending Club, a peer-to-peer lending company, has now originated more than $255 million in loans to consumers. The news comes just three months after the company announced that it had surpassed $200 million in loan originations. As of April 16^th, Lending Club’s statistics page showed that $255,003,975 had been setup by the company.

Here’s the press release that Lending Club issued three months ago relating to passing $200 million in loan originations:

Redwood City, CA — January 19, 2010 — Lending Club (http://www.lendingclub.com), the world’s leading platform for investing in and obtaining personal loans, today announced that it has passed $200 million in total loan originations.

Lending Club reached $100 million in loan originations in March 2010, after 33 months of business, and has doubled that total just nine months later, with the most recent monthly loan originations exceeding $13 million. Since 2007, investors on the platform have received more than $16 million in interest and borrowers have saved as much as $5 million in annual interest on the more than 21,000 loans issued.

“We had a huge year in 2010, setting new loan origination records quarter after quarter,” said Lending Club CEO Renaud Laplanche. “Borrowers and investors alike have recognized the value of our platform, and we look forward to continued growth in borrowers and investors.”

More than 63 percent of Lending Club personal loans have been obtained by consumers seeking to get rid of higher interest debt or to pay off their high-interest credit cards. Rates on unsecured loans through Lending Club start at 6.78 percent APR for creditworthy borrowers, well below the average starting APR of 13.15 percent offered on credit cards to similar borrowers. This difference can mean hundreds or possibly even thousands of dollars in savings as people pay off their debt.  Personal loans through Lending Club are available in amounts of up to $25,000 with flexible terms and can also be used to fund major purchases including vacations, home improvements, small business expansions, and weddings.

Since inception in 2007, Lending Club Notes have delivered a net annualized return of 9.68 percent. Lending Club investors can fund fractions of hundreds of individual loans to build a portfolio of notes. As borrowers pay back loans each month, investors collect principal and interest, net of Lending Club’s service fee that can be reinvested in new notes.

“Lending Club represents a step forward in connecting the source of capital to the use of capital, and it’s clear that the concept has resonated,” said Laplanche. “The financial turmoil of the past few years has driven Americans to seek new alternatives for their borrowing and investing needs, and our simple, transparent process has proven to be a winning formula for everyone involved.”

About Lending Club
Lending Club is an online platform that enables the issuance of and investment in consumer loans.  Lending Club brings together investors and creditworthy borrowers — eliminating the cost and complexity of traditional bank lending — to offer borrowers better rates and investors better returns.  Lending Club was recently recognized as one of the 20 “Breakthrough Ideas for 2009” by Harvard Business Review, has been nominated for “Top 100 Innovators” by The Industry Standard, is on the JMP Hot 100 list, and the Always On Global 250 Top Private Companies list.  In addition Lending Club won the Webby Award in 2008 for the “Best Banking Website”. Founded in 2006, Lending Club is headquartered in Redwood City, CA. More information is available at:http://www.lendingclub.com.