Lending Club CFO resigns

Carrie Donlan has left her position as chief financial officer at the online lender and will be replaced on an interim basis by Lending Club’s corporate comptroller Bradley Coleman.  

The fallout from recent setbacks at Lending Club continues, as the company reported an $81 million loss for the second quarter and detailed the steps it has taken to rebuild investor confidence.

Lending Club announced Tuesday (8 August) that Carrie Donlan has resigned her position as the online lender's chief financial officer to pursue a new opportunity, which comes after the resignation of Lending Club's chief executive officer in May.

Donlan will be replaced on an interim basis by the company's corporate comptroller, Bradley Coleman. In addition to his existing duties, Coleman will serve as principal accounting officer and acting CFO while Lending Club works with an executive search firm to find a permanent replacement for Donlan.

“Carrie was integral to Lending Club's growth and maturity over the past six years,” chief executive officer and president Scott Sanborn said in the statement. “She approached us early this year about planning a transition, and in May the Board and I asked her to postpone her plans until we could navigate recent events,” he added. 

The announcement came as the online lender reported second quarter earnings that showed an $81 million net loss along with a 29 percent drop in originations from the previous quarter.

“Q2 was a busy quarter, and the good thing is that it is now behind us,” Sanborn said on the earnings call. “We have accomplished quite a bit since the events of 9 May,” he added, alluding to the recent CEO departure.

Sanborn went on to detail the steps Lending Club has taken to recover from the disruption that occurred on 9 May, when CEO Renaud Laplanche resigned. An internal investigation found Laplanche altered application dates on the sale of $3 million in loans failed to disclose all of his personal investments.

Sanborn said that 15 of the company's top 20 investors reinvested the platform but at lower levels. In addition, he said that Lending Club had increased interest rates, enhanced asset quality and reviewed its internal reviews and business processes. He also highlighted recent additions to the company's executive leadership, including former McKinsey & Company digital banking practice leader Sameer Gulati as chief operating officer, Blackrock veteran Patrick Dunne as chief capital officer and Fannie Mae president and CEO Timothy Mayopoulos as independent director on Lending Club's Board.