Provy cash cushion

TROUBLED Provident Financial has raised £318m from investors in a bid to right the ship.

The doorstep lender sold 101.8m shares through a rights issue with the aim of increasing reserves and ending speculation about its financial stability.

it will be seen as an endorsement of turnaround plan efforts under boss Malcolm Le May after a disastrous 2017 when shares plunged almost 70pc.

The Provy suffered a catastrophic loss of clients because of a botched iT upgrade, revealed mis-selling probes at its credit card and car finance arms and sacked boss Peter Crook.