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From open banking and CRM platforms to AI and fraud detection tools, six brokers from across the country shared their views on how technology is changing the industry.
Open banking gains ground, but client concerns remain
An ongoing project, open banking is certainly not complete in its delivery and potential.
NextGen, which owns open banking provider Frollo and its broker-focused solution Frollo for Brokers, said almost 120,000 consumers shared their financial data with mortgage brokers through its platform during the last financial year, with open banking now used in close to one in 10 broker-originated home loan applications.
The technology provider also said applications supported by open banking data are approved an average of 11 per cent faster than those submitted through traditional processes.
However, brokers were divided over how well the systems worked in practice, with client hesitation and clunky processes continuing to hold back adoption.
“We utilise open banking with almost every application,” Nick Lissikatos, director of Trelos Finance, said.
“The client avoids the old school process of ordering statements, downloading and then sending them over to the broker (usually insecurely over email). Instead the process is quick, simple and safe.”
Kellie Crocker, partner at Townsville’s RLA Finance, said open banking had become increasingly difficult to avoid as more lenders adopted it.
“The premise that it makes it faster with direct data flow, provides more accurate servicing calculations quicker and reduces fraud risk is all well and good, if it actually works every time,” she said.
Crocker said serving regional clients could present additional challenges, alongside concerns about their trust in and understanding of open banking.
“Clients can get frustrated and can’t understand why they ‘can’t just do it the old way.’” Crocker said.
“Plus, the best way to get repeat business is to sit face to face and have that connection and they see the real human that is doing the work for them – not just click on a link, a bodiless voice over the phone.”
Peter Liu, practising mortgage broker and co-founder of AutoCalc, said: “My use has been limited. Some lenders offer open banking through the ApplyOnline process, but it still depends on the client being comfortable giving consent.
“In my experience, many clients would rather provide their bank statements than complete the authorisation process.”
Sarah Smelt, director of Finance Society, said open banking could be “a little clunky” if not integrated properly.
“I can absolutely see the potential for open banking, particularly in reducing paperwork and the back and forth between brokers and clients, but I think the experience needs to improve before I’d be rushing to adopt it,” Smelt said.
CRM central to workflow, if integrations work
CRMs have evolved from loan-processing tools into broader broker platforms, incorporating AI capabilities, insights, and tools to help brokers identify opportunities and diversify their businesses.
However, while some brokers are enthusiastic about their systems, others say disconnected platforms and repeated data entry continue to create unnecessary work.
“My CRM is essential to managing applications, keeping track of outstanding requirements and making sure future opportunities don’t get missed,” Paolo Llave, senior finance broker at Berti Financial Group, said.
“Broking involves a lot of moving parts, so having a central place to manage those details makes a big difference.”
While Llave said brokers could focus too much on choosing the best CRM rather than making full use of their existing systems, he said better integration would be key to improving their capabilities.
“For the future, I’d like to see stronger integration across emails, documents, lender updates and follow-up tasks, with less double handling. I’d also like it to make ongoing client reviews easier to manage, so the relationship continues well beyond settlement,” Llave said.
For Liu, data transfer remains a major frustration.
“Information already entered in the CRM can still need to be re-entered, supplemented or corrected in ApplyOnline. That creates a lot of duplicate work,” he said.
“I would like more reliable data transfer, clearer prompts about what is missing and fewer places to maintain the same information.”
Tech a double-edged sword in fight against fraud
Technology is playing an increasingly prominent role on both sides of the fight against fraud.
Banks, including the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) and National Australia Bank (NAB), have investigated potentially billions of dollars in fraud, in which AI has played important parts in the undertaking of such crimes.
Meanwhile, however, CBA has spent $1 billion on AI fraud detection capabilities, while tools such as FraudX have come online to help brokers identify potential red flags.
Kit Johnson, Aussie mortgage broker in Forest Lake, Queensland, said the fight would remain an “ongoing contest”, with investment by lenders and aggregators “essential”.
“I would like to see stronger verification tools built into AOL and aggregator systems, so checks become part of the normal application process,” he said.
“I think the best analogy would be antivirus software. As the detection evolves as do the threats.
“Cross checking income information against ATO records, with appropriate customer consent and privacy protections, could be particularly useful.
“Verification is stronger when information can be checked against an independent source. Lenders should help fund and make these tools available across the industry.
“Fraud prevention is a shared responsibility.”
Other brokers stressed that, despite advances in technology, human judgement remained an important part of fraud prevention.
“Technology can help flag inconsistencies, but the broker still needs to question anything that doesn’t add up and verify it appropriately,” Llave said.
“For me, the strongest approach is good technology combined with someone who understands the file and takes responsibility for checking it.”
Lissikatos said technology could be a “lifesaver” by flagging potential issues for further investigation.
“AI tools like FraudX can pick up on inconsistencies with documents that a human would normally miss. It’s not a fool-proof tool in spotting potential fraud but it opens up the opportunity to ask more questions,” Lissikatos said.
AI makes big efficiency savings with the right guardrails
“AI has completely changed the way I run my business. I genuinely don’t think that’s an exaggeration,” Smelt said.
“It’s significantly reduced my working hours and taken away so much of the mental load that comes with running a brokerage.
“I often joke that I’ve essentially created a clone of myself. It sounds like me, speaks like me and understands how I like to communicate.”
While Smelt uses AI to organise her thoughts and workflows, she draws the line at allowing it to make decisions.
“It’s a tool, not a mortgage broker,” she said.
“And I think that’s the distinction that’s really important. AI hasn’t replaced what I do. It’s given me more time to actually do the parts of my job that matter.”
Crocker said AI was effective at locating and collating information quickly, but she remained cautious about relying on it because of its capacity to make mistakes.
“If you are new in the industry and can’t pick an error then that can become a bigger issue,” she said.
“It can save hours and allow us to write more business, but reducing admin and streamlining tasks markedly we are only slowly seeing the benefits of.
“I think everyone should be very careful of the data it feeds into AI. Use it wisely.”
[Related: Data centres emerge as new frontier for commercial finance]
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