Mortgage and commercial finance brokers are among many women from across the broking industry to have been short-listed in the Women in Finance Awards 2025.
A total of 236 finalists have been selected out of 617 submissions for the ninth annual Women in Finance Awards.
For almost a decade, the Women in Finance Awards program has recognised the outstanding contributions made by women in financial services, as well as the companies leading diversity and inclusion across the sector.
The prestigious awards program – hosted by Momentum Media’s financial services brands – champions leading women across financial services, recognising the outstanding achievements of entrepreneurs, CEOs, young leaders, and beyond.
This year’s winners will be crowned at a black-tie gala ceremony held on Friday, 14 November 2025, at the Hyatt Regency in Sydney. Click here to buy tickets.
Mortgage and finance brokers set to shine
Several brokers have been short-listed for their achievements this year, including 10 finalists named in the Mortgage Broker of the Year category and eight recognised in the Commercial Finance Broker of the Year category.
Finalists for the Mortgage Broker of the Year award include:
- Aimee Bergan, APC Home Loans Pty Ltd
- Samantha Harvey, Aussie
- Natalie Denyer, Birdie Wealth
- Mardee Blackwood, 1st Street Financial
- Stephanie Thomas, Loan Market Ignite
- Cathie Gandy, Madd Loans
- Vicky Field, Oracle Lending Solutions
- Melissa Gielnik, Smart Lending
- Alissa Childs, Two Birds One Loan
- Elouise Dooley, Two Birds One Loan
Commercial finance brokers singled out for their success are:
- Kasia El-Rahi, AIA Solutions Pty Ltd
- Melissa Ashcroft, AAA Financial Group
- Julia Paton, Go For Broker
- Melissa Ristevski (Stojanovic), Rethink Financing
- Alice Kol, Talk to a Broker
- Cici Yang, Madd Loans
- Jessica Wong, Valiant Finance
- Maisie Fern, Valiant Finance
Representatives from the broking industry have also been called out for recognition in several other categories, including leadership awards, innovation awards, and wellness awards, among others.
In total, 236 finalists from across the full spectrum of financial services are in the running for an award, including accounting professionals, financial advisers, small-business advisers, executives, entrepreneurs, innovators, thought leaders, marketing professionals, and young leaders.
Employers, training and development programs, wellness initiatives, and women’s community programs were also celebrated in the group categories.
Click here to view the full list of finalists.
The judging process
The Women in Finance Awards program, in conjunction with event stakeholders and a panel of leading female finance professionals, has developed a robust awards methodology to form the backbone for assessing, analysing, and benchmarking Australia’s leading finance professionals.
To short-list finalists, all submissions underwent a thorough audit process, checking demographic and other information against category eligible criteria based on the information provided in the submission.
Those submissions deemed eligible against submission criteria were reviewed and assessed by a panel of Momentum Media events and editorial team members and executives, plus industry stakeholders where required, to determine the finalists for each category.
Finalist submissions will now be delivered to a panel of respected professionals and business leaders, who assess each submission against the criteria of each award category.
For more information about the awards, click here.
[Related: Women in Finance Summit 2025 launches]
