Australia’s ‘first’ blockchain lender sets sights on mortgages

According to the wholesale lender, which aims to be backed by major investors and industry super funds, its “Carbon” securitisation platform will leverage distributed ledger technology to deliver the benefits of increased transparency, security and automation.

Its operating efficiencies will also reportedly present “pricing benefits” for Australian borrowers, enabling partner brokers to tailor loans to clients’ needs and objectives and using risk-based pricing to deliver “unique product, personalised interest rates and a genuine approval in under 15 minutes”, according to AMM.

This is achieved through the company’s Intelligent Credit engine, which takes a holistic view of home loan applications, assessing scenarios “on merit rather than against broad eligibility rules”.

Its credit decision algorithms process applicant information, verified by third-party sources, “to provide immediate feedback to the broker and customer”.

AMM has said that it aims to “empower brokers to service customers more efficiently” through its Broker Plus portal, pledging that it would be a “genuine wholesale lender that won’t compete with a broker for the customer’s relationship”.

Australian Mortgage Marketplace’s chief operating officer, Kym Dalton, noted that the company was launching amid calls for increased transparency in the mortgage market and amid distrust of the finance sector given the ongoing Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry.

“Right now, the market is broken, with little innovation in the last decade. Existing lenders have breached the covenant of trust,” the COO said.

“Current lending credit assessment procedures are antiquated, resulting in a lack of consistency and lengthy times to approval. Products and procedures have not kept pace with fundamental changes to Australia’s work and life patterns, nor have the opportunities presented by advances in technology been embraced.”

Australian Mortgage Marketplace said that it is “dedicated to the highest standards of responsible lending conduct” and aims to “revolutionise” the responsible lending process via its Responsible Lending Engine.

“The Responsible Lending Engine ensures superior outcomes for customers while reducing friction between brokers and their customers,” Mr Dalton said.

Crowdsourced funding equity offer

Officially launching for business on 1 March 2019, Australian Mortgage Marketplace is now inviting industry participants to register for their upcoming crowdsourced funding equity offer.

Speaking to The Adviser about the crowdfund, which is expected to open on Thursday (25 October), Mr Dalton said: “We’re undertaking what we’re calling an industry equity raise, which is an ability for financial services participants, particularly brokers, to have an investment in a lender — ethically, lawfully and easily — by having an industry equity raise on the Enable Funding platform.

“We think it is a great thing for the industry to have a slice of a particularly innovative, wholesale lender that is devoted entirely to them.”

AMM has urged any brokers interested in investing through the industry equity raise to register their interest via the Australian Mortgage Marketplace website.

[Related: Responsible lending: Has the game changed?]