The Federal Trade Commission has filed allegations against marketplace lending company, LendingClub, claiming that it was adding hidden fees, as well as charging customers who no longer had loans with the company, it was reported earlier this week.
News of the allegations dropped LendingClub’s stock 14%, Bloomberg reported yesterday (though today the stock is experiencing a minor positive climb), following a year in which the company has struggled to recover from prior 2017 fraud claims. LendingClub’s stock has declined 80% since it’s initial public offering.
The FTC’s suit alleges that the marketplace lender is charging its borrowers amounts up to $1,000, despite advertising “no hidden fees” to potential customers. The company also automatically deducted funds from users’ bank accounts even after they had paid off their loan, according to the suit.
In a blog post earlier this week, LendingClub responded to the allegations by stating that they “do not agree” that they had violated any rules of compliance, and that they are “very disappointed that it was not possible to resolve this matter constructively with the agency’s current leadership.”
LendingClub’s stock is currently up 0.18% from yesterday, trading at $2.77 per share as of 9am ET today.
Read more at Bloomberg, the Wall Street Journal, PYMNTs, and LendingClub.