Amigo chairman quits company days after sale talks collapse

Troubled subprime lender Amigo has announced the departure of its chairman and confirmed that its chief executive will not stand for re-election, just days after a potential sale collapsed.

Amigo said that Stephan Wilcke would step down on 18 June, although he will continue to provide consultancy services for six months. He will not, however, be paid. Wilcke first announced in December that he was stepping down but at the time Amigo said he would stay in the role for another year to ensure an orderly handover.

A successor has still not been found. Instead, Roger Lovering, the senior independent director, has been named acting chairman.

The company also confirmed that following the resignation of chief executive Hamish Paton, also in December, he would not be putting himself up for re-election at the annual general meeting and will leave the company on 31 July 2020.

The departures come amid a turbulent period for Amigo, which provides loans to people with poor credit history as long as a friend or family member can act as a guarantor

It is in conflict with founder and majority shareholder James Benamor, who has accused the company of committing “slow motion suicide” by allegedly continuing to lend irresponsibly while having to pay refunds on past loans.

The cost of clearing a backlog of customer complaints, in a deal struck with the Financial Conduct Authority, will be at least £35m and could be “materially higher”, Amigo has warned.

Benamor wants the entire board replaced. In December he used his controlling stake to take a seat on the board, but in January Amigo put itself up for sale. In May it announced a buyer had been found, but the deal was conditional on Benamor’s support and on him ending any attempts to oust the board.

Benamor agreed to the latter but has refused to accept the bid, and on Monday Amigo announced talks had collapsed. It also said it was scrapping the dividend to cover the costs of complaints.

The company said on Thursday: “Amigo is aware of its obligations under the UK Corporate Governance Code to maintain a balance of directors to serve on the board and its committees. Amigo continues to look for suitable replacements for each of these roles.”