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[onthefence]

So there has been talk about Lending Club treating their loan slices like securities.  If this means that Prosper loans slices will also be treated like securities, will this raise serious issues with Prosper's ham-fisted squashing of any discussion that does not scream 'Happy-Happy-Joy-Joy" on their forums?

If prosper loan slices suddenly are considered securities, do actions by prosper to cover up what they considered 'negative' critics suddenly become a problem with the SEC?

I predict that the prosper.com official forums will become completely eradicated within the year due to this very issue.  Comments on their blogs will be eradicated a year later after they determine, that moderating out 'negative' comments on their blogs raises the very same regulatory issues as the forums do.

[ira01]

If Prosper's product is considered a security by the SEC, Prosper will have much bigger problems than its forums.  As noted on previous threads, a company that sells unregistered securities can be forced to repurchase them -- even the defaulted ones. 

In any event, I doubt the SEC would (or could) meddle with Prosper's moderation of its own forum.  I'm not aware of any rule that requires Prosper (or any company) to permit commentary on its own forum that it does not wish to allow.  While Prosper could certainly be prohibited from publishing misleading statements on its forums (or its blog or its main website), I don't think that means Prosper would have to open the floor to everyone who wants to comment.