Borrowing

Most loans to be sourced digitally ‘within 10 years’, says fintech

A web-based brokerage has predicted that “within five to 10 years” most home loans will be sourced through digital platforms. Re-iterating what he told The Adviser in May, the founder and CEO of online brokerage uno. has predicted that there is “huge potential” for digital broking in the future, despite digital mortgage origination currently representing less than 3 per cent of the mortgage market. Vincent Turner highlighted research undertaken by financial services firm Deloitte in 2016 for the Mortgage and Finance Association of Australia, which found that 27 per cent of broker customers and 34 per cent of direct-to-lender customers would consider making digital mortgage applications, as testament to this […]

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Fintech startup MoneyMe hits $100 million loans; sets eyes on niche loans market

Fintech startup, MoneyMe Financial Group, has this week broken through the $100 million loan mark, after record daily compounded growth of 2,747 per cent in its medium amount and personal loans offerings drove its lending volume exponentially in the past few months.   This rapid acceleration, combined with record low default and customer complaint rates, now sees MoneyMe set to launch a series of niche loan products over 2017, all designed to provide greater financial inclusion for the growing Australian millennial market.   “To have reached this exciting milestone so quickly really is validation that the millennial market is actively looking for financial alternatives to the big banks and their […]

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May
30

The other credit risk to watch in China: Fintech-fuelled debt

China’s government has copped what Scott Morrison is so desperate to avoid: a credit rating downgrade. But in the discussion about Moody’s surprise move last week to cut its rating for our biggest trading partner, there’s one word that has been notably absent, even though it’s a risk of growing importance to investors and officials. That word is “fintech”. Nowhere are the large potentially huge benefits of fintech – and longer-term risks – clearer than in China. This realisation comes as financial regulators everywhere, including in Australia, start to turn their attention to how these risks could eventuate, if fintech one day grabs a larger share of the financial services […]

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May
25

Winners at The Finnies!

Congratulations to those Australian Fintech companies and their fearless leaders who won awards last night at the inaugural Finnies Fintech Awards:   Female Fintech Leader of the Year: Emma Weston, AgriDigital Co-Founder & CEO   Joint Male Fintech Leaders of the Year: Greg Moshal & Beau Bertoli, Prospa Co-Founders   Fintech Organisation of the Year: Afterpay   Emerging Fintech Leader of the Year: Emma Weston, AgriDigital Co-Founder & CEO   Emerging Fintech Organisation of the Year: Spaceship   Best Fintech place to work: Prospa   Best workplace diversity: Timelio   Marketing Campaign or Brand Initiative of the Year: Equitise – Equitise Bubble   Excellence in establishing Market Presence (Australia): BrickX […]

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Fintech to help consumers be their own broker

A new platform is soon to be launched that uses technology instead of a mortgage broker to help consumers find the right home loan. The fintech, Hero BroKer, aims to give back to the consumer by giving them access to the complete home loan application process. “By providing the right tools and technology to the borrower, we let them control their finances so they’re not reliant on a broker. They effectively become their own broker,” Clint Howen, founder of Hero BroKer told Australian Broker. The Hero BroKer model is similar to other tech players such as Airbnb, Howen said. “Airbnb looked at a sea of houses. They built a platform […]

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May
16

NAB-owned UBank launches robot to sell home loans

In a first for an Australian bank, NAB-owned UBank has launched an artificial intelligence “chatbot” for home loans. Using IBM Watson’s supercomputer technology, it aims to reduce the time it takes to complete an application for a home loan, by providing real-time answers to questions that is available 24/7. Called RoboChat, it has been trained using data collected from customer questions and will continue to learn as more customers engage with it, becoming smarter and more user-friendly over time. Users ask it questions such as “what term do you offer on home loans” and “do you offer redraws and how do they work”, with RoboChat offering on-the-spot help. A handful […]

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OnDeck launches ‘Turn That No Around’ campaign

Small business loan specialist OnDeck Australia has kicked off a campaign, #turnthatNOaround, targeted at small business owners who are looking to seize growth opportunities, but are unable to do so due to lack of funding from traditional sources. The campaign, which is already running on radio, is scheduled to run across outdoor, social (LinkedIn and Facebook) and digital media to encapsulate an integrated multi-channel outreach. With the #turnthatNOaround campaign, OnDeck aims to reach small business owners who have experienced a “no” from their banks, giving them an opportunity to secure a loan that is much faster than the banks – it takes just one business day. “Small business owners, which […]

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May
11

Aussies getting ‘fleeced’ by major banks, says HashChing

A recent analysis conducted by the online mortgage marketplace has claimed that borrowers with the big four are paying up to $90,000 more than they need to for their home loans. By comparing the fixed and variable rates offered by the big four banks with those available through the HashChing platform, the analysis revealed it was possible to save up to $90,000 over the life of a home loan. HashChing pointed out that according to the RBA, one-third of borrowers have less than a month’s worth of breathing room around their mortgage, with millions of Australians at risk of falling behind on their payments. Commenting on the findings, HashChing CEO […]

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