Key focuses include security, compliance
Finsure has launched in New Zealand, providing aggregation services to mortgage advisers nationwide.
Owned by Finsure Australia, which has over 3,000 mortgage broker members, Finsure New Zealand operates as a separate company and draws upon the experience and knowledge held across the Tasman.
The proposition to launch in New Zealand has been a year in the making, and the aggregator is now able to provide a complete offering to New Zealand advisers. It can support advisers operating under either their own or under Finsure New Zealand’s Financial Advice Provider (FAP) license.
Finsure New Zealand country manager Jenny Campbell (pictured above) said that the aggregator was “super excited” to be able to offer a “one stop shop” for New Zealand advisers.
Campbell said a high quality aggregation service went further than providing a panel of lenders and collecting commissions.
“You’ve got to have a great customer relationship management (CRM) system, but it’s also all the other ancillary services that advisers can end up spending a lot of time on,” said Campbell.
Having worked in the New Zealand mortgage industry for around 20 years, including as director of the Mortgage Supply Co and general manager of the former New Zealand Mortgage Brokers Association, Campbell is passionate about supporting mortgage advisers and identifying opportunities for growth.
“I love supporting advisers and helping them find ways to maximise their potential, build a sustainable businesses but also to have some fun along the way and take some time out,” she said.
Data security, compliance a strong focus
With data breaches on the rise, Campbell acknowledged the growing importance of security for New Zealanders and said that Finsure had made this a priority.
Its CRM system, ‘Infinity’ is tailored to the New Zealand operating environment, supporting both smaller and larger adviser businesses with functionality such as splitting of commissions if required.
Owned locally and supported by a team of developers in Sydney, Infinity is designed to keep the adviser compliant and is easy to navigate, Campbell said.
“As advisers are going through the advice process with their client and collecting information, it is automatically dropped into regulatory and advice documents and the application all at the same time,” Campbell said.
She said the Australian market was more mature and generally more prescriptive than New Zealand’s regulatory framework. While mortgage brokers operating across the ditch initially saw regulation as a barrier, that was no longer the case.
“It’s been really interesting learning how Australia has incorporated that level of regulation into their businesses and how their aggregator has helped them with that,” Campbell said. “Because their processes are so streamlined and tried and true, we can leverage off that experience – we don’t have to recreate the wheel.”
Acknowledging that mortgage brokers in Australia write more than 70% of residential home loans (71.5% over the September 2023 quarter), Campell said that she had spent considerable time speaking to brokers in Australia to understand how their businesses operate.
She said New Zealand advisers had a significant opportunity to grow their share of mortgage business, which would be a “massive win” for both advisers and consumers.
Range of ancillary services available
A sponsor of the 2024 New Zealand Mortgage Awards (New Brokerage of the Year Award), Finsure
New Zealand offers an in-house marketing team, providing a range of support services to advisers, such as designing of logos, newsletters and social media support if required.
Advisers can also access a team of in-house loan writers and support staff, either on a one-off or regular basis.
“Advisers can choose what level of support they want and various add-ons to our basic aggregation offering,” Campbell said.
Summing up the mortgage advice industry as the “ultimate people industry”, Campbell is passionate about the work that mortgage advisers do in “making peoples’ dreams come true”.
“We want to lift the bar for everyone and make sure that whoever operates under our umbrella is operating at the highest level,” Campbell said.
What aggregation services do you value as a mortgage adviser? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
