Focus on brokers remains, says head of home lending
It’s now three months since ANZ acquired Suncorp Bank, with Troy Fedder, Suncorp Bank’s executive general manager home lending, saying the transition has been seamless and his team’s commitment to working closely with its broker partners hasn’t changed.
After a complex two-year process, Suncorp Bank officially became part of ANZ on Aug. 1.
MPA spoke to Fedder (pictured above) to find out how the Queensland-based bank had found the experience so far, especially the home lending team.
He said overall the transition had been really smooth.
“There's real value in having a bank own a bank. The members of ANZ’s leadership team have gone out of their way to support the Suncorp Bank business, certainly making us feel very welcome in the ANZ family,” Fedder said.
“They’re also interested in understanding how we deliver for brokers and customers. The [Suncorp Bank] home lending team is very much in a business-as-usual mindset. We’re focused on how we can deliver for our brokers and customers.”
Business as usual for Suncorp Bank team
Fedder said brokers would notice little change since the acquisition with the same Suncorp Bank home lending team’s BDMs and relationship managers continuing to look after broker and aggregator partners. “For me, delivering day in and day out has been the focus.”
The aim has been to ensure that all of Suncorp Bank’s processes and systems continue to operate as before and this has all occurred seamlessly.
“The best bit of feedback I get from aggregators is that it is absolutely just business as usual,” said Fedder.
Suncorp Bank’s focus on brokers continues
Broker relationships remain highly important at Suncorp Bank, said Fedder.
“Over the last few years, we’ve been very focused on building a business that is centred around the broker and the broker experience. We absolutely see brokers and aggregators as key partners.
“We certainly don't see brokers in any way as competitors, we see them as partners. Our success is linked to the success of the broker experience in the broker market.”
Fedder said the bank would continue to review its systems and processes, taking on board feedback from brokers “in order to be a really supportive partner … to deliver for the end customer”.
“What I love about the broker model is that brokers are very passionate about delivering an exceptional level of service for their customers … we see that relationship they have and we acknowledge the importance of brokers helping to deliver an amazing customer outcome.”
More than 80% of Suncorp Bank’s new home lending is sourced via brokers, and this has risen over the last few years. “Suncorp Bank continues to be a close partner to the industry as it grows and that’s exciting.”
Fedder said the broker proposition has steadily improved over the past five years and BID has been positive for the industry.
Risk and governance, a perceived pain point for brokers, is actually a positive for the broker market, elevating and highlighting their professionalism, he said.
Value proposition
Asked how Suncorp Bank positions itself in a competitive industry, Fedder said there were a couple of factors.
Fast turnaround times
He said the bank had built an ecosystem to deliver one of the fastest turnaround times to approval or decision in the market.
“We have been consistently in the top three lenders for home loan approvals now for well over 90 weeks.”
Fedder said this was important to brokers; both in the purchase market when customers were racing to secure the property, and also under best interests duty.
Clear lending segments
“We're also very clear with our brokers about the segments that we can really deliver on consistently,” said Fedder.
This includes Suncorp Bank’s SunLight loans, an automated offering for lower-risk borrowers that provides final approval within 48 hours for eligible customers.
Fedder said the bank has performed well in this segment, and brokers have acknowledged SunLight is often the best option for that type of customer.
Acquisition to provide tech boost
Whenever banks merge, greater investment in technology is often cited as a key reason, especially for the smaller partner.
Fedder said Suncorp Bank would benefit from being part of a bigger group, especially from ANZ Group’s work in artificial intelligence technology.
“I've had some exposure to some of the great things ANZ are doing in the AI world. We will look to tap into this over time,” he said.
“That includes looking at things we might be able to do to deliver for our customers collectively, how to make our processes even more streamlined, and continuing to focus on generating a really good speed to approval.”
While tech upgrades will take time, Fedder said he’s keen to see “if there are any quick wins that we can develop and best practices that we can adopt on both sides”.
Appointment of Paul Brick
Paul Brick, former head of strategic partnerships at ANZ, was appointed as Suncorp Bank’s new head of broker partnerships on Oct. 1.
Brick has worked in banking for 24 years, including six years at ANZ and nine years at CommBank, where he and Fedder worked together.
Fedder said Brick has incredibly strong relationships across the broker industry, with both brokers and aggregators.
This factor is important as Brick “takes up the baton” to ensure the strong broker partnerships business is maintained and opportunities “to evolve and further support brokers and customers” are sought.
“Paul inherits a really great team; in my view one of the very best in the broker industry.”
Fedder believes this is because the bank listens to brokers’ feedback and makes changes accordingly.
One of Brick’s tasks will be to amplify the voice of brokers by seeking feedback from key aggregator partners and translating that into further supporting the needs of brokers in the home loan business.
“I think Paul brings a fresh set of eyes and will help take this wonderful business to the next level,” Fedder said. “I look forward to seeing Paul and the team's success over the coming months.”
Troy Fedder’s role
As executive general manager home lending. Fedder said he is very passionate about his role. “Ultimately, my job is to make sure we deliver amazing broker and customer outcomes for home lending.”
The end-to-end role covers the product, pricing and assessment teams, home lending projects, risk and governance, the home loan hardship business and the broker partnership business. This totals around 500 staff.
Fedder said home lending is an important part of the bank’s business and the team aims to continue to grow the portfolio.
“Having the opportunity to stay close to home lending and continue to have wonderful professional relationships across the mortgage industry is a really exciting part of my role.”
Queensland presence
ANZ, in its arguments for acquiring Suncorp Bank, said it would enhance the major bank’s presence in Queensland. It will also develop a new major tech hub in Brisbane, set to employ 700 people over a five-year period.
Fedder said Suncorp Bank has a proud 122-year history in Queensland. “As one of the fastest growing states in the country, ANZ has made several commitments to Queensland.”
Suncorp Bank CEO Bruce Rush is also ANZ Group’s new managing director of Queensland.
“One of Bruce’s roles is to drive and elevate the importance of delivering to the Queensland market,” said Fedder. “That’s very exciting and I look forward to working with Bruce and our broker partners to deliver even greater levels of support for Queensland over the coming years.”
Future focus
Fedder said he’s excited about the future, in particular the next 12 months, and looking at how the bank will deliver for brokers and customers.
“There's a very clear mandate for Suncorp Bank to continue to get better for our brokers and customers … better in six months than where we are today, better again in 12 months to where we are.”
Fedder said one of the things he loves about his role is the importance of the bank’s partnership with brokers on home lending.
“It can be such an emotive time when buying a house, or refinancing, and so to make sure that we deliver in that moment of truth, not just for the end customer but also for our brokers, I think is one of the things that will set us apart from the rest of the market.”
The two key areas of focus for FY25 are SunLight loans and building on that segment; and a boost in investor lending.
“I look at FY25 with optimism both for Suncorp Bank and of course the broader broker market. It’s an exciting time to be part of the mortgage industry.
