LendingClub Corporation, the prominent digital marketplace bank, has made a decisive real estate move that signals both confidence in its own growth and renewed faith in the Bay Area’s business climate. The company announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to purchase the 22-story, 233,887-square-foot office tower at 88 Kearny Street for $74.5 million, making it LendingClub’s new headquarters beginning in the spring of 2026. According to a news release by LendingClub, this strategic acquisition allows the company to secure prime office space at a price well below pre-pandemic highs and positions it for continued expansion.
The move is underpinned by fortuitous timing: the expiration of LendingClub’s lease at its current location, 595 Market Street, and the ongoing softness in commercial real estate valuations, particularly in downtown San Francisco. In the words of CEO Scott Sanborn, “LendingClub has been proud to maintain an award-winning workplace in downtown San Francisco since 2012 and we’re happy to reinforce our commitment to the city, which is home to amazing talent and has long been a hotbed of innovation.”
The financial fundamentals of the deal further emphasize its appeal. According to the company’s public filings, the $74.5 million purchase—funded entirely from LendingClub’s balance sheet—constitutes under 1% of LendingClub’s total assets ($10.6 billion) and about 5.6% of its total equity, per the firm’s 2024 year-end financials. Drew LaBenne, LendingClub’s CFO, underscored that, from a financial perspective, the acquisition is “economically comparable to leasing space in the San Francisco market with potential upside as leasing and property values recover in the Bay Area.” The purchase is not expected to have a material effect on the company’s financial performance…