Eddie Smith, operations director at AMPD, said this was the first chance packagers had to be part of such discussions that would allow AMI to represent packagers’ issues to the Financial Services Authority. He said packagers should work together and not see each other as competition in such talks.
Smith added: “If everyone went in with the idea of full disclosure, the discussions would be very productive. However, if people are guarding their territory, then it could come to a stalemate. We can’t ignore the fact that our opinion is important as we control a huge part of the distribution chain and it would be foolish not to contribute.”
Other packager alliances have backed Smith’s call. Jon O’Brien, operations director of the Professional Mortgage Packagers’ Alliance (PMPA), said: “As long as people leave their egos at home and look at the big picture, it will work. We can share information and people should come in with a solving head and not a competitor’s head. Although we are in competition, we all have the same issues with lenders and technology that we need to work on together.”
John Rice, managing director of the Residential Alliance of Mortgage Packagers (RAMP), commented: “I support what AMI is trying to achieve. I don’t consider us as competitors, as we’re all trying to get to the same place with the approaches we’re taking.”
