Firefighters Mutual Bank (FMB) has announced its entry into the broker market following a successful merger with Teachers Mutual Bank (TMB) in November 2016.
“This is an ideal time to have another reputable niche brand enter the broker market under the Teachers Mutual Bank banner,” said Mark Middleton, national manager of third party distribution at Teachers Mutual Bank.
“We anticipate that brokers will be keenly interested in what Firefighters Mutual Bank has to offer to the market.”
As well as supporting a niche not currently open to brokers, Middleton told
Australian Broker that FMB’s new third party channel created an extra “business opportunity” that could help brokers supplement their current activity.
The launch of FMB’s third party channel will roll out over the remainder of the 2017 financial year, Middleton said.
“The channel is at present ahead of projections which is mainly attributable to the launch of UniBank in August 2016 and primarily home loan lending nationally. As a result, the organisation has exceeded its expectations by over 25% YTD.”
FMB will add a new business development manager for NSW/ACT as of 6 February 2017. The bank will also provide additional recruitment for resourcing support to aid with an increase in submission flows without impacting service standards.
This move opens up Australia’s 7,400-strong firefighting and emergency services market, said Jim O’Connell, general manager of FMB.
“Furthermore, Firefighters Mutual Bank’s entry into this channel shows that we are a bank that is fully engaged with our members’ financial needs and goals.”
By joining the broker market through Teachers Mutual Bank, FMB will connect with a third-party distribution network partnered with 12 aggregators and more than 2,200 accredited brokers.
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