Non-bank lender Pepper Money has introduced digital verification of identity as part of the home loan application experience to simplify and streamline customer onboarding.
NextGenID is the new digital VOI service within ApplyOnline from lending technology provider NextGen.
Launched to Pepper Money’s Australian network of accredited brokers this month, NextGenID offers real time ID capture and fraud assessment as part of the ApplyOnline application which provides brokers with fast, intuitive ID verification at point of sale and enables a frictionless onboarding experience for their customers.
Pepper Money general manager, mortgages and commercial lending Barry Saoud (pictured above left) said brokers have long been telling the non-bank that verifying the identity of an applicant was a tedious, paper-based process with common back-and-forth requests for missing information which delayed application approvals.
"We saw this opportunity to partner with NextGen as an important investment towards our ongoing commitment to creating effortless experiences between the customer and broker,” Saoud said.
“Moving identity verification online is a key step in delivering an efficient and compliant process, meeting our customer expectations and ensuring brokers can spend their valuable time in front of customers and less time on the admin.”
Saoud said brokers and customers would enjoy the seamless user experience, given that the entire process was integrated within the ApplyOnline application.
“This will empower brokers to enhance application quality and straight-through processing from point of sale and eliminates face-to-face onboarding with application ID requirements which are able to be captured and authenticated remotely without physical/paper identification documentation,” he said.
“This saves time taken on manual intervention and missing information requests and creates processing efficiencies through automation and instantaneous verification. It helps with meeting customer expectations of digital service offerings and improves customer service levels and conversion.”
Saoud said Pepper Money’s goal was to remove even more documentation from the application process and enable greater efficiencies for brokers and customers.
“The reduced time taken on verification speeds up approval times and enables better experiences, empowers brokers to improve application quality and boost straight-through processing,” he said.
“This is a big win for brokers and Pepper Money customers.”
Saoud said as one of the first lenders to adopt NextGenID and pioneer this new VOI capability within ApplyOnline, Pepper Money was continuing to invest in market-leading technology that ensured every customer and broker interaction was as effortless as possible.
“We are the first non-bank in the country that can offer this market leading service with the fastest turnaround times across significant market segments – prime, near-prime and non-conforming borrowers including self-employed customers,” he said.
“Our scalable technology solutions continue to differentiate us and support our ongoing ability to grow efficiently whilst maintaining our industry leading turnaround times.”
NextGen head of lender partnerships Mike Ponsonby (pictured above right) said he acknowledged the significance of this rollout for brokers.
“Pepper Money’s ongoing investment in enhancing their technology capabilities is a testament to their commitment to empower brokers and deliver a truly innovative broker experience,” Ponsonby said.
Read more: NextGen introduces VOI tool to ApplyOnline
“Pepper Money has an exciting strategic roadmap and we’re really proud to be their technology partner. Being an early adopter of NextGenID speaks to Pepper Money’s drive to offer flexibility and fast turnaround times and by streamlining and automating ID capture and verification, Pepper Money is eliminating a key pain point in the application process that impacts brokers, lenders and customers.”
Ponsonby said NextGenID eliminated the need for manual intervention or missing information requests when it came to applicant identity requirements.
“NextGenID allows brokers to request and capture identity requirements as part of the ApplyOnline mortgage application process,” he said. “Verification is fully automated using optical character recognition and biometric technology and packaged ready for the lender and is now available to all Pepper Money accredited brokers for home loan applications.”
