Amigo Loans has stumbled on to stay as a listed entity, despite not having had a single customer for months.
It tried to restart its lending business last year, but gave up. It then (bizarrely) had a go at turning itself into a music and video streaming business, but plans were quickly abandoned.
In its latest roll of the dice, the company has hired Scottish billionaire Jim McColl to act as an adviser. 72-year-old McColl is a seasoned turnaround specialist, having previously transformed the fortunes of small London-listed business Clyde Blowers into a big multinational turning over £1.3 billion.
Could he pull off the same trick with Amigo? When the firm made the announcement, the Standard arranged an interview with McColl to get his vision for the company. But the billionaire had barely got his feet under the desk when, hours before the scheduled chat, he pulled out and refused to reschedule.
What did McColl discover, in the two days since joining the company, that gave him cold feet? Perhaps he feared being probed about the £73 million fine the FCA laid at its door last year, but chose not to enforce because it didn’t think the company had the money? Or did McColl suddenly baulk at possible queries about Amigo’s future, not as a lender, a music streamer or even some new incarnation, a dating site, perhaps?
These are all questions Spy would like to have asked in the interview. But they shall remain a mystery.
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