SAN FRANCISCO, May 19, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP, a national investor-rights law firm, alerts LendingClub Corporation (NYSE:LC) investors that a securities class action lawsuit has been filed and that July 15, 2016 is the lead plaintiff deadline. The litigation concerns Chairman and CEO Renaud Laplanche’s May 6, 2016 abrupt resignation, his potential self-dealing, and the recently announced U.S. Department of Justice subpoena served on the Company.
If you suffered significant losses because of your purchases of LendingClub between December 8, 2014 and May 6, 2016, or have information that will help our investigation, contact Hagens Berman Partner Reed Kathrein, who is leading the firm’s investigation by calling 510-725-3000, emailing LC@hbsslaw.com or visiting https://www.hbsslaw.com/cases/LC. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California and investors have until July 15, 2016 to move the court to participate as a lead plaintiff.
The Company announced on May 9, 2016 that its Board accepted Laplanche’s May 6, 2016 resignation, which it said was prompted by an internal review into the Company’s sale of $22 million in low quality loans to a single institutional investor. The sale violated the investors expressed instructions. LendingClub also reported that Laplanche recommended the Company invest in a third party fund without also disclosing his personal interest in that fund to the Board’s Risk Committee. On this news, LendingClub’s stock price declined 35% to close at $4.62 per share that day.
On May 10, 2016, Bloomberg reported that two large institutional clients ceased purchasing LendingClub loans. LendingClub’s stock price declined 11.3% to close at $4.10 per share that day.
“Laplanche’s departure, his potential self-dealing, and the DOJ’s investigation indicate potential fraud at LendingClub,” said Hagens Berman partner Reed Kathrein. “At the very least LendingClub’s internal controls were ineffective to prevent this malfeasance.”
Whistleblowers: Persons with non-public information regarding LendingClub should consider their options to help in the investigation or take advantage of the SEC Whistleblower program. Under the new SEC whistleblower program, whistleblowers who provide original information may receive rewards totaling up to 30 percent of any successful recovery made by the SEC. For more information, call Reed Kathrein at 510-725-3000 or email LC@hbsslaw.com.
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