Out of the ORDE(inary)

Q. ORDE was founded in 2019. What gap were you trying to fill in the market?

Through the mid-2010s, APRA stepped in with some macroprudential regulation, and the non-bank industry blew up. It grew fivefold in that time… but while they were growing fivefold, what we saw in the market was that brokers were being left behind.

Brokers had gone from being delivered great service, but were then being underserviced by the non-banks. So, we saw it as a great opportunity to bring back to brokers a lender solely focused on them.

‘Built for broker’ is our slogan. And one of the things that I think is different with ORDE is we equally share the passion of brokers. We love what brokers do for everyday Australians. So we don’t just say the words, they actually have meaning, and they turn to outcomes and actions.

If we can form part of a complex scenario and help brokers deliver a solution, we’re helping brokers build their businesses, too.

Q. Who is ORDE’s core customer?

We’re here to help anyone that the banks won’t, can’t, or find ‘too hard’. And often, we’re here to support self-employed Australians.

Whether it’s residential, commercial, SMSF, short-term bridging (which is going to become a really big product over the coming years), residential construction, development finance. You name it, we hope we can help.

For example, we had one of our broker’s customers – Karen – who we helped and actually met! We did an executive off-site in King Valley, hopped on to a winery tour, and the bus driver, Karen, was an ORDE customer. She told us she’d been through bushfires – and then COVID-19 – and that really damaged the local area and her business. Karen, like most Australians, pivoted, found a way to find income, and continue working and helping her local community. But unfortunately, that wasn’t enough for banks. Continuing to show income through a tough period wasn’t what they wanted to see. Whereas, with ORDE, we were able to find the solution as we saw the end outcome. Three years on, Karen is back to doing what she loves: continuing to meet her home loan and continuing to give back to the community, all while making sure we got to go to the top wineries around the King Valley!

Q. Where does your funding come from, given you’re not deposit-funded?

I would say we’re one of the most well-backed and well-funded non-banks in Australia. We now have $5 billion of assets under management with capacity to support ongoing growth. We work with four of the five major Australian banks, two offshore banks, and operate an active RMBS program. Since launching our RMBS program in 2024, we have completed three transactions, each deepening investor participation and receiving strong support, while building momentum within the RMBS market. Our inaugural $1 billion issuance was the largest debut RMBS from a non-bank, more than double the size of the previous record.

Q. You’ve launched new research this year – Outlook Australia – for brokers and their clients. What are you aiming to uncover?

The best decisions are backed by thorough research. We thought it was pretty important as we grew to start sharing our ability to obtain research and share that with brokers. We ran some surveys in 2025 that showed us that brokers see their role as helping to build their clients’ futures. We really loved that messaging. So, we wanted to come to market and help them think about how to build their futures, too. We undertook some work with Bernard Salt AM, a well-respected demographer and social commentator, to forecast what the next 10 years look like. We’re referring to it as Outlook Australia, and we undertook a national broker roadshow at the end of February to showcase the findings with brokers.

Q. When you look at the demographic shifts in the research, what will matter most for brokers?

The most important theme is probably population growth and changing demographics. There are 7 million Millennials moving into their 40s over the next decade. A lot of previous first home buyers now are going to be thinking about families and thinking about moving into their forever home. And that’s going to create an amazing opportunity for brokers.

We’re also going to see a continued focus on occupations that are going to create further complexities around income, which is where non-banks are here to help. Lending is going to continue being complex. So, brokers have an amazing opportunity to play a role in finding solutions by working closely with their customers.