• Alongside its earnings report this morning, Santander Consumer announced its exit from the personal lending space, and has classified the loans in its personal lending portfolio as held-for-sale. • Lending Club (LC -4.8%) is selling off as investors mull one less big buyer for the company's loans (Santander in 2013 agreed to a three-year deal to buy up to 25% of LC's total originations). • The selloff is unwarranted, says BTIG's Mark Palmer, noting the 25% level was a cap imposed by Lending Club, and anecdotal reports of demand for peer-to-peer loans outstripping supply by a 4-to-1 pace. • While the agreement with SC may have been an important driver of LC growth when it was inked, it's less so today, says Palmer. "SC's role in LC's business has become much less essential." He expects LC CEO Renaud Laplanche to address the situation when the company reports its Q3 after the bell tonight. • Previously: Santander Consumer tumbles after "noisy" quarter, exit from personal lending (Oct. 29)