Finance · Profile from Finance Research Companion
LendingClub (Happen, Inc. since June 2026)
The company that made "peer-to-peer lending" a household phrase, then spent a decade proving that a lender without deposits is hostage to its loan buyers. Renaud Laplanche launched Lending Club in 2007 as a Facebook app matching borrowers with individual lenders; it registered its notes with the SEC in 2008, became the largest US marketplace lender, and listed on the New York Stock Exchange in December 2014 at $15 a share, closing its first day worth ~$8.5bn. Seventeen months later Laplanche resigned after an internal review found $22m of loans sold to an investor against its instructions, altered application dates and an undisclosed personal investment; the shares never recovered their IPO price. Under Scott Sanborn the company settled with the SEC (2018) and FTC (2021), closed the retail notes that had defined it (2020), bought Radius Bank (2021) to fund loans with deposits, and by 2025 earned ~$136m as an $11.6bn-asset digital bank. On June 22, 2026 it renamed itself Happen, Inc., its bank Happen Bank, and moved its listing to Nasdaq as HAPN.
At a glance
- Founded
- Incorporated in Delaware in 2006; launched May 2007 as a Facebook application (verify incorporation month)
- Headquarters
- San Francisco, California; bank operations in Boston (from Radius) and Lehi, Utah (verify)
- Ownership / structure
- Venture-backed until IPO; NYSE (LC) December 11, 2014 – June 18, 2026; Nasdaq (HAPN) from June 22, 2026. Bank holding company since February 1, 2021, supervised by the Federal Reserve; subsidiary LendingClub Bank, N.A. (renamed Happen Bank, National Association, June 2026) supervised by the OCC
- Leadership
- Renaud Laplanche (founder, CEO 2006–May 9, 2016); Scott Sanborn (CEO since 2016, previously COO/CMO); Hans Morris (executive chairman 2016, later chair, verify); Drew LaBenne (CFO, verify)
- Products
- Unsecured personal loans (core); auto refinance (historical); patient and education finance via Springstone (2014–, later sold/wound down, verify); deposits (LevelUp savings, checking, CDs); commercial and SBA loans (from Radius); home improvement loans with Wisetack (from April 2026); DebtIQ and spending tools
- Scale (2025)
- Originations ~$9.6–9.7bn (+33%); total net revenue ~$1.0bn (+27%, verify exact); net income $135.7m (2024: $51.3m); total assets $11.6bn; deposits $9.8bn (company, January 28, 2026)
- Scale (2026)
- Q1 originations $2.7bn, net income $51.6m, CET1 17.0%; Q2 originations $3.1bn, net income ~$58.1m; Q3 originations ~$3.3bn, record pre-tax income ~$76.8m, EPS $0.50; 2026 originations guided to $12.3–12.4bn (company; reported)
- Signature moves (incl. failures)
- Facebook app and the P2P model (2007); SEC registration and quiet period (2008); NYSE IPO (2014); Laplanche scandal (2016); SEC and FTC enforcement (2018–21); end of retail P2P notes (2020); Radius Bank acquisition (2021); loan-buyer retreat and structured certificates (2023); Happen Bank rebrand (2026)
9 strategic moves analysed
Each one gets a full strategy file in the companion: context, the decision, the financing, what happened, and the lesson.
2007
Facebook App and Peer to Peer Model
Founding / launch
2008
SEC Registration and Quiet Period
Regulatory pivot (securities registration)
2014
IPO on NYSE
IPO
2016
Laplanche Scandal and Resignation
Failure / governance crisis
2018
SEC and FTC Enforcement
Regulatory settlement
2020
End of Retail P2P Notes
Pivot / product exit
2021
Radius Bank Acquisition
Acquisition
2023
Loan Buyer Retreat and Structured Certificates
Restructuring / funding innovation
2026
Happen Bank Rebrand
Rebrand / relisting