Laplanche commits to “increased transparency” with new reporting partnership

Upgrade signs deal with reporting and analytics firm dv01.

Former LendingClub founder and CEO Renaud Laplanche has signed his new platform up to a partnership with dv01. The data firm will now manage the recently-launched Upgrade’s reporting and analytics, with the aim of bringing greater transparency to institutional investors.

Laplanche was ousted from LendingClub in May 2016, only to return with a new consumer lending outfit and $60m of venture backing in April of this year. Under the new partnership, all Upgrade investors will initially receive complimentary access to Upgrade data through the dv01 platform.

dv01’s tools allow investors to visualise their holdings, providing insights on loan composition, performance metrics and credit metrics. The company also sheds light on securitisations, and will act as the loan data agent for Upgrade’s planned programme of securitisations. Upgrade has advised that it intends to tap the securitisation market on a quarterly basis.

dv01’s past exploits include having acted as the loan data agent for the consortium of investors that signed a $5bn loan purchasing agreement with Prosper in February of this year. The company also works with the likes of LendingClub, CommonBond, SoFi and Marlette.

"We intend to bring a new wave of innovation and increased transparency to both sides of the marketplace, consumers and investors," said Upgrade co-founder and chief executive officer Renaud Laplanche (pictured). "In particular we are committed to increasing transparency for both whole loan buyers and securitization investors. Our partnership with dv01 will provide institutional investors access to the most up-to-date Upgrade data available—including monthly refresh of credit bureau information—and the tools necessary to analyze that data efficiently."