‘Toff entrepreneur’ behind crisis-hit Amigo Loans firm appeared on The Secret Millionaire

A millionaire whose business is on the brink of ruin appeared in an episode of Channel 4‘s The Secret Millionaire back in 2008.

James Benamor was worth £77 million when he appeared on the episode set in Moss Side in Manchester, searching for deserving people to give money to.

He made his fortune with Britain’s largest guarantor lender, Amigo Loans, which  lends to people with a poor credit score if they have a friend or family member willing to make repayments if they cannot.

The company has since been inundated with complaints for selling unaffordable loans, and now faces collapse without the help of further investors.

Amigo has calculated that customer complaints could cost it around £338million – money it does not have.

James Benamor was worth £77 million when he appeared on the episode set in Moss Side in Manchester, searching for deserving people to give money to

Staff could stay at a French chateau free of charge as a perk at the height of Amigo Loans  

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In his episode on The Secret Millionaire, Benamor said: ‘There isn’t a company out there that we compete with that I don’t want to see smashed to the ground.’

Described as a ‘toff entrepreneur’ and ‘hard-nosed millionaire’, Benamor ruffled some feathers with his competitive nature and one-liners.

‘I’m not going to give money to people who don’t f***ing deserve it,’ he said in a piece to camera.

‘I’ve always wanted to be the best at everything I do… Competition is basically the reason I still work… because I want to be the best.’

Benamor first launched his business when he was 21, and appeared on the show aged 30.   

He spent a week driving a battered Nissan Micra around the streets, meeting victims of drug addiction and violence in the neighbourhood. At the end of the programme, he revealed his true identity and donated money to local charities and youth projects 

Born Rachid James Benamor and educated at Poole Grammar School, the son of Tunisian immigrants claims to have been an unruly teenager who ‘was taking a lot of drugs, became a petty criminal really’.

‘I was a nightmare,’ he told viewers of The Secret Millionaire. ‘I was a nightmare for my parents. I was a nightmare for anyone that knew me. There were several occasions where I could have ended up in prison.’

He spent a week driving a battered Nissan Micra around the streets, meeting victims of drug addiction and violence in the neighbourhood.

At the end of the programme, he revealed his true identity and donated money to local charities and youth projects. 

According to The Times, customers who signed up for loans with exorbitant interest rates have been pushed to contemplating suicide after they were crippled by the debt. 

The business could reportedly be expected to pay out up o £112 million to customers.