Non-major lender ME has recorded its “biggest year to date” with strong broker demand bringing in more than $3.9bn worth of loans through the third party channel.
The bank’s full year financial results for FY17 were released yesterday (14 September) with home loan settlements up 36% to $6.2bn and the bank’s home loan portfolio up by 12%. This means more than 60% of all settlements originated via brokers.
“Demand from brokers has continued to stay strong due to consistently competitive home loan rates and consistently high levels of service,” general manager of broker sales Lino Pelaccia said.
Throughout FY17, the bank made improvements to its home valuation processes to promote faster processing of applications. Furthermore, ME brought on additional broker staff including BDM and state-based relationship managers for new-to-bank brokers and introduced a new credit quality hotline and sales loan support team, he added.
“ME also improved its home loan pricing structure during the year, providing additional tiers so the bank remained competitive across more market segments. FY17 was ME’s biggest year to date and the bank remains on track to grow in FY2018.”
ME also reported a full year underlying net profit after tax of $85.2m, an increase of 14% on FY16.
“The bank’s performance is particularly positive in light of the external operating environment – softening credit growth, macro-prudential restrictions on home lending, regulatory imbalances that give the major banks a competitive advantage, and a banking industry ratings downgrade by S&P in May,” said ME CEO Jamie McPhee.
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