Shares in troubled doorstep lender Provident Financial jumped by around 20pc after the FTSE 100 company announced a shake-up in management and the return of the former head of its consumer credit arm.

Chris Gillespie, who ran the business between 2007 and 2013, has been brought back into the fold as the company desperately seeks stability after its shares nosedived by more than 66pc earlier this week.

Around £1.7bn was wiped off Provident’s value after it issued its second profit warning in two months, scrapped its dividend and revealed the shock departure of chief executive Peter Crook.

The fourth blow of what analysts described as a “quadruple whammy” came as the company also announced a regulatory probe from the Financial Conduct Authority in to one of its products.

Provident said Mr Gillespie has been tasked with “re-establishing relationships with customers, bringing collections back to a normal level, and stabilising the operation of the business”.

Since stepping away from the company in 2013, Mr Gillespie has served as chief executive at pawnbroker Albemarle & Bond and loans companies Amigo Loans and 118118 Money.

Luke Enock, who works for Provident subsidiary Satsuma, and Greg Cant, director of corporate finance and development, will join Mr Gillespie in the division.

Manjit Wolstenholme, executive chairman, said: “My review of the business is ongoing as we move towards stabilising the Provident home credit business and improving the service to our customers.

“These are my first appointments and I intend to work closely with the new team on turning the home credit business around and to putting a plan in place to deliver good results for the company.”

The swift recruitment of Mr Gillespie was hailed as a “decisive” action by analysts. “To have found an experienced industry executive that was willing to take on the role so quickly is a small positive surprise after the week’s earlier disappointments,” said Shore Capital’s Gary Greenwood.

The recovery in Provident’s share price will also be welcomed by its top five investors, who lost £1.25bn between them as shares collapsed earlier in the week.

Among the leading investors is star fund manager Neil Woodford, whose 18pc holding lost £300m in value.

Mr Woodford has said he was “hugely disappointed” at the collapse but added that he believes the firm will recover and “be around for many decades to come”.