THE boss who “came out of retirement” to help rescue Bournemouth lender Amigo is standing down.

Amigo Holdings said Gary Jennison will be replaced as chief executive by Amigo’s current chief financial officer, Danny Malone.

Kerry Penfold, currently head of finance, will step up to the role of chief financial officer.

Mr Jennison joined as a non-executive director in August 2020, when the guarantor lender was fighting for survival amid a flood of complaints about mis-selling. He became chief executive a month later.

In May this year, Amigo – which employs around 200 people at Commercial Road, Bournemouth – won High Court approval for a scheme which would cap payouts in mis-selling cases.

It is awaiting approval from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to resume lending under a new brand name, RewardRate, with interest rate reductions for customers who keep up to date with their payments.

Chairman Jonathan Roe said: "I'd like to thank Gary for his dedication and considerable contribution to Amigo.

“When he took the role in September 2020, Amigo was teetering on the brink and we appointed Gary to lead the turnaround and the major transformation required. We now stand in a far better place, with a clear vision for the business and within sight of returning to lending. There is still work ahead but we are now entering a new phase in our recovery focused on our new proposition and growth."

Mr Jennison said "I came out of retirement as I'm passionate about financial inclusion and believe that Amigo can play a positive role in addressing the clear gap that exists for many people who are excluded from mainstream finance.

“I'm very proud of how much we have achieved as a team through what has been an extremely challenging period. Given this progress, and as we look towards a capital raise, it feels the right juncture to hand over the baton as we move from turnaround to rebuild.

“With the approval of the scheme of arrangement, the business can now move forward. The FCA has yet to approve our return to lending and we continue to work closely with the FCA to achieve this goal as soon as is practicable. Our new lending proposition, RewardRate, will be better for our customers than our products in the past. I wish both Danny and the company all the success for the future."

Mr Jennison is standing down from his chief executive and director roles immediately, but he will continue to be employed until the end of the year to support the business in transition.

Danny Malone is a qualified chartered accountant who has ben chief executive of Everyboday Loans Limited and CitiFinancial Europe PLC, and finance director of Avco Trust PLC.