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Wonga in Newcastle United sponsorship talks

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By John Glenday, Reporter

October 8, 2012 | 1 min read

Payday loan firm Wonga is reportedly in talks with Newcastle United over a possible three year shirt sponsorship deal from the start of next season after the football club pulled out of their sponsorship deal with Virgin Money a year early.

The £8m a year deal could be finalised within the next fortnight but the controversial nature of Wonga’s work is likely to raise eyebrows with Blackpool, sponsored by Wonga this season, already under fire for accepting their cash.

This stems from the high rates of interest Wonga charges for its loans, which last year hit £185m on the back of a quadrupling of loans made to 2.5m.

Responding to the growing appeal of such payday lenders the Office of Fair Trading has ramped up its own investigations into the industry, conducting 68 property searches in the first five months of the year alone.

The Oft is expected to publish the findings of its review into the industry later in the year.

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