Lending Club under investigation by US Justice Department

The U.S. Department of Justice has opened an investigation into Lending Club , the online lender whose chief executive was forced out last week after an internal probe found the company had falsified documentation when selling a package of loans. The firms is now said to have received a federal grand jury subpoena and has confirmed that it plans to co-operate with courts and regulators. Company officials have declined to discuss any details of the testimony or records the subpoena is seeking. The company announced yesterday: "As a result of events surrounding our May 9, 2016, announcement … numerous law firms have announced that they are looking into potentially filing lawsuits. As a result, we anticipate that we will be subject to significant litigation in the near future…In addition, we have been contacted by regulatory authorities requesting information related to the events surrounding the resignation of Mr. Laplanche, and we intend to cooperate fully with those inquiries.”

Still reeling from revelations that forced the resignation of its founder and chief executive, Lending Club said on Monday that it had received a subpoena from the Justice Department.

The company, which serves as an online matchmaker between small-business borrowers and individual and institutional lenders, disclosed the grand jury subpoena in a regulatory filing, saying it intended to cooperate with the federal investigation.

A week ago, Lending Club, which is based in San Francisco, revealed that its founder and chief, Renaud Laplanche, had resigned after an internal investigation discovered fabrications in about $3 million of loan applications.