Ubuntu 18.04. hangs shortly after boot with a kernel > 5.4.0-54-generic

My system has recently started hanging shortly after boot when using a kernel version newer than 5.4.0-54-generic.
I can reproduce the hanging behaviour with kernel verions 5.4.0-56-generic through 5.4.62-generic (latest at the moment).
The system works for a few seconds but then it becomes unresponsive. It is not possible to open applications, run commands in a terminal or even shutdown anymore.

Steps to reproduce:
1. Boot
2. Choose a newer kernel image
3. Login
4. In a terminal, enter sudo ls (first time works)
5. Enter sudo ls again (now hangs)

Changing a to console with Ctrl+Alt+FX works shortly but then it hangs as well.
If I am quick enough I can still click on the reboot menu button but then it still hangs and cannot complete the shutdown.
With kernel version 5.4.0-54-generic everything works perfectly well and it has done so for years now with any previous kernel version.

I would appreciate any guidance. Please feel free to ask me for further information.

Thank you!