Going beyond a mortgage

How NAB is helping the broker channel capitalise on the "engine room of the economy"

Australia might have been a resource-based economy for a long time, but that’s no longer the case. Now SMEs, microbusinesses, entrepreneurs and sole traders are becoming the “engine room of the economy”, says Steve Kane, NAB’s general manager of broker distribution.

“We look at the types of customers that brokers introduce to the banks, and around 30% of those are in fact small-business customers, so there’s immediately an affinity between brokers themselves and small business customers,” Kane says. 

There’s a big opportunity for brokers to assist their existing customers with a wider set of products that go beyond just their needs for a mortgage. Not only that, but there are numbers to back up the growing appetite of this market. According to NAB’s research, 44% of small businesses are expected to expand in the next three years, and that means they’re going to need a trusted adviser whom they can rely on for credit services.

NAB has already braced for that surge in demand by introducing a number of technological enhancements to the broker channel, including online verification tools IDyou and ZipID, to make it easier for brokers to securely collect and submit customer identification and other documents.

NAB’s small-business toolkit for SMEs includes a conversation guide for brokers, so even those who aren’t 100% commercially oriented can have informed discussions with clients and better navigate the questions and information required to get these transactions across the line. 

NAB’s market-first prequalifying tool is another valuable component of this kit. It gives brokers an understanding of how to structure an SME loan and provides them with a good indication as to whether the application is likely to be approved by NAB. The bank also has a dedicated BDM workforce on the ground servicing the third party, as well as a broker response centre and a credit coaching centre.

“We’re really focused on making sure that we make digital capabilities an enabler for brokers” - Steve Kane, NAB

Kane says NAB will continue to invest in technology that eases the burden on brokers, including introducing new digital capabilities that streamline and consolidate the SME loan application process. Technology will also allow customers to sign documents upfront and digitally from anywhere they’re located via their phone or tablet, as well as upload these documents electronically, Kane says.

Later this year, NAB plans to launch its $100,000 unsecured QuickBiz Loan for small businesses into the broker channel with electronic lodgement in place. This all-in-one digital experience will enable brokers to provide customers with efficient service and quick turnaround times.

“We’re really focused on making sure that we make digital capabilities an enabler for brokers because we still believe very strongly that face-to-face interaction, and the relationships that brokers develop with their customers, is the reason why the channel has grown as fast as it has over the last five or six years and will be the reason it continues to grow,” Kane says.

One man who knows the difference that technology can make for SME deals is Sydney-based finance broker Aaron Ly of Citadel Capital Solutions, who started in small-business lending in 2012. 

“[Technology] would help speed up our turnaround times from workshop stage through to settlement,” Ly says.

“The majority of the lenders that are on our panel are still paper-based. Turnaround times would be greatly improved if SME deals can be lodged via an electronic portal like ApplyOnline. And this will, in turn, help contribute to a better customer experience.” 

If residential brokers apply the strong customer focus they’re known for, spend time getting to understand the unique needs of each of their small-business customers, and build on those relationships, they’ll be able to diversify effectively, Kane believes.

Ly agrees that understanding each transaction on a case-by-case basis is important. “There are a number of factors that I take into consideration when recommending suitable lenders to our customers: solution and outcome, the client’s financial goals and objectives rates and fees, and convenience, banking platform, and customer service.”

In the end, brokers who continue to strive for increased involvement with their customers, and who are determined to lift the standard of professionalism of those interactions and the quality of the loan applications they submit, will be able to build their businesses and find that sweet spot of success with SMEs.

Steve Kane
Broker head,
NAB