Profit blow at lender Provident Financial

Provident Financial has seen profits drop by more than a fifth after suffering disruption while shifting its home credit business to a new model.

Pre-tax profits dropped by 22.6 per cent to £115.3 million in the six months to the end of June, with the firm booking a £40m hit as agent effectiveness dipped during the transition.

The lender, which offers loans and finance to people with weak credit scores, saw annualised returns on assets slip to 12.8 per cent for the period, down from 14.2 per cent in 2016.

But the group enjoyed a brighter performance from its short-term loans division Satsuma, with credit card issuer Vanquis Bank notching up strong new business.