Tributes as Provident executive chairman dies suddenly at 53

MANJIT Wolstenholme, the executive chairman of struggling subprime lender Provident Financial, has died suddenly at the age of 53, the company said yesterday.

Previously non-executive chairman, Ms Wolstenholme took control in August to steady the ship after Provident’s second profit warning in three months sent shares down 65pc in one day.

Senior independent director Malcolm Le May said she had shown “exceptional leadership” in stepping up to the role. He said: “The thoughts of everyone at Provident are with Manjit’s family and friends.”

Bradford-based Provident’s shares soared in the wake of the financial crisis as high street banks turned away from risky borrowers.

The company, which goes door-to-door selling loans and credit cards, was promoted to the FTSE 100 in 2015 and its pre-tax profits climbed 26pc to £344m last year. But chief executive Pe- ter Crook had to make way for Ms Wolstenholme after a botched reorganisation of its workforce caused collections to plummet.

Ms Wolstenholme trained as an accountant at Coopers & Lybrand. She previously worked at Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein, and rose to become co-head of investment banking. She became Provident’s non-executive chairman in 2014. Mr Le May has been appointed interim executive chairman.