An open letter to Shareholders from the CEO
12 October 2020
Amigo Holdings PLC
("Amigo" or the "Company")
An open letter to Shareholders from the CEO
Dear Shareholders
When I became CEO of Amigo I said, "it's fair to say I like a tough challenge", which is true. But I get a stronger sense of pride and accomplishment from the end result. Amigo has had a tough two years, but it is an exciting business with a really strong and valuable purpose.
I have successfully turned around three financial services businesses in my career, and I am determined to make this number four. My job is to lead the turnaround, but I can't do it on my own. Amigo is full of good people at all levels and we are working hard to fix the complaints, fix the relationship with the regulator, and get Amigo lending again. Our customers need us and by Amigo currently not lending more widely, they are the ones that are missing out.
I know that the dynamic of our shareholder register has changed enormously since our IPO in 2018 and we recognise that many of you will have lost a lot of money from being a shareholder in Amigo. My job is to make sure that we engage with all types of shareholders, whatever your size of holding. I want to get involved and listen to what you have to say. I am here because I am motivated by achieving results. I want to turn this business around and get it back on track.
I have had a good relationship with the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulatory Authority in my previous roles. I am going to spend my time building relationships with the key people in the regulator; to discuss my plans and to get their help to make sure what we're planning to do is in line with what they want us to do. I need to ask them questions and listen to their answers.
I have seen a lot of evidence that we do things properly. We ask a lot of questions to really understand our customer's outgoings and income. Where a customer has a valid complaint and we have done something wrong, we are going to do the right thing for the customer and put it right. There are undoubtably cases where we have done the wrong thing, but a significant number of the claims that we are getting are not genuine claims.
The origin of Amigo is about one man not being able to borrow money. Our customers are typically people who have not been able to borrow money themselves because of a blemish on their credit history or they just don't have a credit history. Amigo serves a clear, vital purpose for these customers. It allows them to buy a second hand car to get to work, it provides the deposit to rent a home, it allows them to consolidate expensive debts into a much cheaper facility and it gets people on the credit ladder. There is no doubt that this section of the UK population, which equates to millions of people, is very badly served by the mainstream banks and is misunderstood. We can help these people and I am looking forward to working with the team and with the regulator to make sure that we continue to do so.
The ability of Amigo to help our current and future customers could genuinely change their lives and set them on a path to financial inclusion. This is our purpose and working together we can make Amigo great again.
Gary Jennison
CEO of Amigo
Investor video
To hear more from Gary about his background and views on Amigo, please watch his introductory video to investors here .
Contacts:
Amigo Holdings PLC investors@amigo.me
Kate Patrick Head of Investor Relations
Roger Bennett Company Secretary
Media
Hawthorn Advisors amigo@hawthornadvisors.com
Lorna Cobbett Tel: +44 (0)7771 344 781
About Amigo Loans
Amigo is a public limited company registered in England and Wales with registered number 10024479. The Amigo Shares are listed on the Official List of the London Stock Exchange. Amigo is a leading provider of guarantor loans in the UK and offers access to mid‐cost credit to those who are unable to borrow from traditional lenders due to their credit histories. The guarantor loan concept introduces a second individual to the lending relationship, typically a family member or friend with a stronger credit profile than the borrower. This individual acts as guarantor, undertaking to make loan payments if the borrower does not. Amigo was founded in 2005 and has grown to become the UK's largest provider of guarantor loans. In the process, Amigo's guarantor loan product has allowed borrowers to rebuild their credit scores and improve their ability to access credit from mainstream financial service providers in the future. Amigo is a mid‐cost provider with a simple and transparent product ‐ a guarantor loan at a representative APR of 49.9 per cent., with no fees, early redemption penalties or any other charges. Amigo Loans Ltd and Amigo Management Services Ltd are authorised and regulated in the UK by the Financial Conduct Authority
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