Wonga to write off the debts of 330,000 customers
Wonga is to write off the debts of 330,000 customers whose loans would not have been made under new affordability criteria being introduced by the pay-day lender.
Wonga is to write off the debts of 330,000 customers whose loans would not have been made under new affordability criteria being introduced by the pay-day lender.
If Wonga had found breaches in its lending process and taken the initiative in putting things right, they would deserve praise.
The truth seems to be different - behind the great "payday payback" is the Financial Conduct Authority, a powerful watchdog.
The FCA has new powers to regulate the payday sector and what we are seeing today is just the start.
Insiders at the Authority tell me - and I think they are correct - that many lenders are likely to simply leave the market between now and January - either because they cannot or will not apply new rules on checking customers ability to repay.
Wonga, under Errol Damelin, was lending irresponsibly on an almighty scale, 375,000 people is larger than the population of Cardiff.
After the payday lender admits it failed to properly check potential borrowers, it now faces a challenge to regain customers' trust.