Brokers are facing a number of issues as the lending environment undergoes significant changes.
Watch now: Helping brokers tackle their challenges
“In terms of uncertainty, I can absolutely assure Bankwest needs brokers,” Rakhit said. “We don't have a large physical store network. Brokers have consistently been our distributor of our products and services. We were one of the very first banks to embrace the broker channel almost four decades ago, and we will remain absolutely a partner with the broker channel.”
In terms of regulation, Rakhit said: “We will work with brokers at Bankwest to ensure that as we learn more, as we understand more, of what the regulators are looking for, we can partner with brokers to ensure that their submissions meet our standards, meet the lending standards of the industry.”
On diversification, Rakhit said the bank has opened up a third-party team to be trained in commercial transactions.
“Our BDM's are equipped to assist brokers if they want to diversify into commercial lending,” he said.
To help mortgage brokers navigate a more restrictive regulatory environment, Bankwest ensures that all its brokers have face-to-face access to a business development manager.
“Every Bankwest broker can have access to and in-the-field BDM,” Rakhit said. “But most importantly, that BDM is backed by a broker support manager who is a desk-based, analyst-cum-underwriter-cum-support person. We've reorganized our processing center, so we now have something called case ownership. Case ownership means that an individual assessor will receive the broker’s deal and they will be responsible for taking that deal all the way through to settlement.”
To better meet brokers’ changing needs, Bankwest said it continues to work on new improvements and initiatives in response to broker feedback. This includes Bankwest’s one-stop-shop website for brokers.
