Holding(s) in Company

Provident Financial PLC
3 April 2002

DEALINGS BY SUBSTANTIAL SHAREHOLDERS

NOTIFICATION OF MAJOR INTERESTS IN SHARES



1) Name of company

Provident Financial plc

2) Name of shareholder having a major interest

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

holding of that person's spouse or children under the age of 18

Non-beneficial interest of shareholders referred to in 2 above

4) Name of the registered holder(s) and, if more than one holder, the

number of shares held by each of them
Registered holder                                           shares held
Chase Nominees Limited                                      3,972,391
Chase Manhattan Bank London                                 294,100
Bankers Trust                                               46,900
Citibank                                                    42,500
BT Globenet Nominees Limited                                46,100
MSS Nominees Limited                                        42,150
Chase Nominees Limited                                      27,500
Nortrust Nominees Limited                                   44,000
RBS Trust Bank                                              262,050
Bank of New York London                                     254,295
MSS Nominees Limited                                        4,860,236
Chase Nominees Limited                                      272,030
Nortrust Nominees Limited                                   159,490
Bankers Trust                                               256,759
Mellon Trust                                                78,450
RBS Trust Bank                                              694,680
Morgan Stanley                                              156,790
State Street Bank & Trust                                   224,353
KAS Associatie                                              24,040
Bank of New York Europe                                     79,800
RBS-EDINBURG                                                29,800
Northern Trust                                              479,270
Citibank                                                    51,500
Chase Manhattan Bank London                                 7,579
HSBC Client Holdings Nominee (UK) Limited                   57,600



5) Number of shares/amount of stock acquired

2,631,929

6) Percentage of issued class

1.07%

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

2 April 2002

11) Date company informed

3 April 2002

12) Total holding following this notification

12,464,453

13) Total percentage holding of issued class following this notification

5.08%

14) Any additional information

-

15) Name of contact and telephone number for queries

Rosamond J Marshall Smith

01274 731111 ext. 2356

16) Name and signature of authorised company official responsible for

making this notification

Rosamond J Marshall Smith

Company Secretary



Date of notification: 3 April 2002





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