Sub-prime lender Amigo avoids £73m fine after claiming hardship

FCA finds company put customers at high risk of harm by failing to assess whether they could repay loans

The sub-prime lender Amigo has dodged a 73m fine despite having put consumers at a high risk" of harm, amid fears that the financial penalty could have led to its collapse.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) investigation found Amigo put business interests ahead of its customers', by failing to assess properly whether customers, or their guarantors, could afford to repay loans they applied for - noting faults in both its automated tech and human oversight between November 2018 and March 2020.