About 100 mortgage brokers removed from new One Bank platform
Westpac’s attempts to streamline and digitise its mortgage processes have backfired as teething issues emerge on its Westpac One platform.
The new One Bank platform, which was meant to pioneer a quick and seamless mortgage origination and application process, has instead caused brokers headaches, some reporting jumps in processing times, quicker turnaround time via the legacy Westpac systems, and difficulty in getting in touch with support staff on Westpac One.
These issues have led to Westpac removing about 100 mortgage brokers from the new platform, The Australian first reported.
Westpac’s One Bank platform was piloted in 2017. Since then it has rolled out the One Bank platform across brands and branches – from Westpac to St. George – all in-house bankers and more than half of its circa 37,000 broker partners with an aim to on-board all consumer mortgages through the platform by the end of 2022.
“This will enable end-to-end digital mortgage processing for internal and third-party channels, making it simpler and faster for bankers, brokers, and customers,” Anthony Hughes, Westpac’s managing director for mortgages, previously told The Australian. “Westpac is now upgrading the system to further improve capability and response times as we continue the rollout.”
In November, Westpac reported about 10% of brokers used the new platform. It expected the majority to be submitting loans on it by March 31 this year.
Westpac’s loan approval time from application dropped from an average of 9.6 days to about six days in its own channels in February. For brokers, it sits at about seven days, down from 11.7.
Investors are still watching Westpac’s broader simplification program, however, which includes selling assets and improving systems. Its latest trading update showed some improvement in its mortgage unit and more confidence in achieving its $8 billion cost target by 2024 despite its growth in home loans still being behind those of Commonwealth Bank and National Australia Bank.
“We think more certainty on a margin floor, early execution on cost reduction and more consistency in mortgage growth are needed to close the valuation gap,” Morgan Stanley analysts told The Australian.
At its annual results in November, Westpac chief executive Peter King said that Westpac had an “ongoing focus” to improve approval times and was looking to “ramp up” the home loan business.
The bank is offering $4,000 cashback to customers who refinance through St. George, or $3,000 if they shift their home loan to Westpac.
