Goldman Sold $1 Billion of Marcus Loans to Investment Firm Varde as Part of Exit

Investment firm Varde Partners snapped up about $1 billion of Marcus loans that Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has been offloading as it dissolves a once-celebrated effort to lend to Main Street.

Varde bought the personal loans at a discount to face value last month, according to people with knowledge of the transaction who asked not to be identified discussing private information. The loans in question were deemed to be performing — where borrowers are current on their payments — and their sale ensures Goldman has all but exited most of the loan book it originated directly for consumers.