High-cost loans firm Evlo eyes £200m sale in sign of subprime comeback

High cost lender Evlo has tapped bankers for a sale which could fetch the company a valuation of more than £200m, City AM can reveal, in signs of a revival of interest in the controversial subprime lending market. Evlo, which calls itself ‘the friendly UK lender’ and offers loans at interest rates of up to 252 per cent, has hired advisers at Alantra to run a sale process dubbed ‘Project Oak’, sources told City AM. The sale could signal a resurgence of investor interest in the sub-prime and high-cost loans market formerly known as Everyday Loans which has shrivelled in size since 2019 under scrutiny from regulators and a deluge of claims from borrowers over exploitative lending practices. Some 250 high-cost credit firms exited the market between 2019 and 2024, while overall lending capacity was down by almost £3bn, according to the Financial Conduct Authority. Sources said investors were now eyeing an opportunity to capitalise on a consumer lending gap, estimated to be arou