Justin Welby delivered a blunt warning to the boss of Wonga
The Archbishop of Canterbury has warned the on-line lender Wonga that low-cost credit unions could force it out of business.
The Most Rev Justin Welby told the company that the Church of England wants to "compete it" out of existence.
In a magazine interview, Archbishop Welby said he spoke to Errol Damelin, Wonga's chief executive.
Wonga has been criticised for its high rates of interest. Mr Damelin said they had had a wide-ranging talk.
"I've met the head of Wonga, and we had a very good conversation," the Archbishop told Total Politics magazine.
"I said to him quite bluntly, 'we're not in the business of trying to legislate you out of existence; we're trying to compete you out of existence'."
New unionsArchbishop Welby has said he plans to expand the reach of credit unions.
Earlier this month he launched a new credit union aimed at clergy and church staff.
Credit unions charge their members low rates of interest to borrow money.
Wonga has said it charges around 1% a day on its consumer loans, which are short-term, and for small amounts.
In April 2013 the government announced an investment of £38m in credit unions, to help them offer an alternative to pay-day lenders.
Source: BBC News - Business http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-23433955#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa
