FAST has welcomed a neobank specialising in small and medium-sized enterprise lending to its panel.
The addition of Judo Bank reinforces the aggregator’s commitment to helping FAST brokers meet their business clients’ needs, according to Rob Ryan, FAST head of NSW/ACT & QLD.
“Judo Bank is a standout when it comes to innovation and being truly agile and customer-focused,” Ryan said.
“We are continuing to expand our lender panel to meet the diversified and specialised needs of our brokers and their clients. The addition of Judo Bank further enhances our brokers’ offering, as business customers increasingly demand lenders to be more agile and service focused.”
Judo secured its banking licence in April 2019 and has since surpassed $1bn in lending to SME customers, in addition to securing $1bn in deposits.
"This exciting partnership with FAST is further validation of our collective commitment to supporting the broker market and addressing the $93bn funding gap for SME customers," said Judo Bank MD of third party, George Obeid.
FAST’s inaugural Business Lending Index, released in November 2019, confirmed the major banks are truly being challenged from disruptors such as Judo; the data pointed towards the continued growth in market share of non-banks, fintechs and neobanks due to their "nimbleness and innovation".
The report showed banks experienced a 6% fall in market share in FY19, while non-banks more than doubled their market share from 5% to 11%, with settlements growing at 112%.
“2019 played out as the year of the challenger banks, fintechs and neo-banks, who are leveraging data and technology and relationship management to meet the needs of businesses in an efficient and agile way,” Ryan said.
“We are pleased to be supporting our brokers to access innovative lenders such as Judo Bank to cater to their SME customers.”
