Holding in Company

Provident Financial PLC
8 September 2000



Schedule 10 - Notification of Major Interests in Shares

1   Name of company:
Provident Financial plc

2   Name of shareholder having a major interest:
FMR Corporation and its direct and indirect subsidiaries
Fidelity International Limited and its direct and indirect subsidiaries

3   Please state whether notification indicates that it is in respect of
holding of the shareholder named in 2 above or in respect of a non-beneficial
interest or in the case of an individual holder if it is a holding of that
person's spouse or children under the age of 18:
Non-beneficial interest of persons referred to in 2. above

4   Name of registered holder(s) and, if more than one holder, the number of
shares held by each of them:
Registered shareholder                          Shares held
----------------------                          -----------
State Street Nominees Limited                        24,700
Chase Nominees Limited                              600,000
State Street Nominees Limited                        40,000
Bank of New York Europe                              27,200
Lloyds Bank Nominees Limited                        209,500
Nortrust Nominees                                    20,100
Clydesdale Bank (Head Office) Nominees Limited    5,131,900
Bankers Trust                                       226,514
Citibank                                            126,126
BT Globenet Nominees Limited                         93,000
MSS Nominees Limited                                 30,250
Chase Nominees Limited                              298,295
HSBC Client Holdings Nominee (UK) Limited           190,108
Nortrust Nominees Limited                           573,721
Gracechurch Nominees                                 29,500
RBS Trust Bank                                      253,050
MSS Nominees Limited                              1,907,418
Chase Nominees Limited                               20,700
Clydesdale Bank (Head Office) Nominees Limited       75,291
Nortrust Nominees Limited                           654,478
Bankers Trust                                       399,740
Mellon Trust                                        168,800
RBS Trust Bank                                    1,847,199
Morgan Stanley                                      152,200
NAB-Australia                                        66,100
State Street Bank & Trust                           519,068
Credit Suisse                                         7,400
KAS Associatie                                       40,100
Bank of New York Europe                             384,022
RBS-EDINBURG                                         50,400
Northern Trust                                      589,100
Citibank                                             33,500
Not disclosed                                       383,780

5   Number of shares/amount of stock acquired:
2,385,062

6   Percentage of issued class:
0.96063

7   Number of shares/amount of stock disposed:
-

8   Percentage of issued class:
-

9   Class of security:
10 4/11p ordinary

10  Date of transaction:
6 September 2000

11  Date company informed:
7 September 2000

12  Total holding following this notification:
15,173,260

13  Total percentage holding of issued class following this notification:
6.11%

14  Contact name for queries:
Mrs R J Marshall Smith

15 Contact telephone number:
01274 731111 extension 2356

16  Name of company official responsible for making notification:
Mrs R J Marshall Smith

17  Date of notification:
8 September 2000





Additional Information: