Amigo Holdings is a guarantor loans / subprime lender. It is listed on the

London Stock Exchange London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange in the City of London, England, United Kingdom. , the total market value of all companies trading on LSE was £3.9 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Pau ...

History

The company was established as a mid-cost guarantor loans lender by

James Benamor James Benamor (born 18 May 1977) is a British businessman. Business activities Benamor became one of the wealthiest young people in the United Kingdom after starting his loan brokerage company, the Richmond Group, in 1999 at the age of 21.

in 2005. Benamor stood down as CEO, handing over the role to Glen Crawford, in 2015. In June 2018 the company was the subject of an

initial public offering An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investment ...

on the

which valued the company at £1.3 billion. The company announced in July 2020 that it would be providing at least £35 million in order to address consumer complaints regarding lack of checks on affordability when taking out a loan. Amigo Holdings trading as Amigo Loans was involved in a case in Redhill County Court on 14 September 2016, when a Miss Abbas successfully defended a claim of circa £5,000 by Amigo Holdings on the basis that she never received a copy of the loan agreement. On 1 June 2021, it was reported that Amigo faced possible bankruptcy after a High Court judge rejected an attempt by the company to cap payouts to customers. Gary Jennison, Chief Executive Officer of Amigo, commented: "Without a scheme, Amigo faces insolvency as it will be unable to satisfy its customer compensation claims as well as meeting the legally binding funding obligations owed to its secured creditors."

Operations

The company is a business which issues mid-cost loans with payments guaranteed by a borrower's family or friends. The amount lent is up to £10,000, with a 49.9% APR, higher than loans from mainstream banks, but lower than high-cost products such as payday loans or rent-to-own. The company has secured around 88% of the guarantor loan market in the UK.

Ownership

Approximately 61.4% of the company was owned by Richmond Group, a business controlled by James Benamor, the founder. Benamor sold his complete shareholding in June and July 2020 after failing to change the composition of the Board of Directors.

References

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External links

Official site for consumersOfficial site for investors
Financial services companies of the United Kingdom Financial services companies established in 2005 Companies based in Bournemouth Companies listed on the London Stock Exchange British companies established in 2005