Head to head: How are your expectations of your aggregators changing?

Brokers say they are increasingly looking for partners who integrate digital technology into their service offering

AGGREGATORS PREDICT FUTURE OF COMMISSIONS
Outsource Financial CEO Tanya Sale believes fee-for-service will never come into play in the industry. “I think it’s a disaster,” she said during MPA’s Aggregator Roundtable on 11 May. According to Sale, a flat-fee model would set the industry back to post-GFC lows when the vast majority of mortgages were written by banks. “That’s not what the government wants. That’s not what ASIC wants, and that is certainly not what we want in our industry.” As for the future of trail commissions, one aggregator had a positive outlook: “Trail commission is very important for brokers who do the right thing,” said Specialist Finance Group MD William Lockett. “It’s relationship-based that’s ongoing, not transactional-based.”

Paul Cluff
Managing director
MoneySmith Group

“Besides being a pivotal partner in ensuring that our businesses are operating effectively and efficiently, aggregators are becoming more of a learning centre in the financial services realm. Brokers are often independent operators lacking in either time or expertise to stay abreast of the constant changes. Today’s aggregators need to be positioned to help brokers in this area.

“Furthermore, aggregator software is very important. A good system can greatly support brokers in compliance requirements, and communication to customers and marketing.

“My experience has proven that a professional aggregator group often directly benefits brokers, which then translates to a great customer experience and outcome.”

Lee Middleton
Regional manager
Nectar Mortgages

“In addition to providing the core functions of commission disbursement, PLAN assists us with strategy, knowledge, superior technology and even referrals. We need a BDM team that consider themselves partners in our success and will hold us accountable to our commitments. We get that from PLAN, along with the opportunity to attend PD days and updates about compliance issues, market changes and new technologies.

“In a world where processing times are increasing and rules are ever-changing, we expect our aggregator/sub-aggregator to systemise those tasks that take us away from doing what we’re best at – building referral relationships and speaking to clients.”

Redom Syed
Director
Confidence Finance

“Automation is no longer a buzzword. It’s a key part of the modern brokerage business strategy. Using automation successfully allows brokers to improve their customer retention and helps deliver exceptional customer service. Good automated systems remove a major constraint on growth.

“We are relying on aggregators to provide systems, technologies and education to allow us to better automate our processes and help us grow. Today, an aggregator’s value to brokers is less about training and educating us on lenders’ policies and more about delivering market-leading technology to improve our processes that will deliver better value to our customers.”