Mortgage Technology – May 2021 by mortgageintroducer

Champion of the Mortgage Professional

MORTGAGE TECHNOLOGY www.mortgageintroducer.com

May 2021

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THE MARKET IN FOCUS

EDITORIAL

COMMENT

Publishing Director Robyn Hall Robyn@mortgageintroducer.com Publishing Editor Ryan Fowler Ryan@mortgageintroducer.com Editor Jessica Bird Jessicab@sfintroducer.com Deputy News Editor Jake Carter Jake@mortgageintroducer.com Editorial Director Nia Williams Nia@mortgageintroducer.com Commercial Director Matt Bond Matt@mortgageintroducer.com Advertising Sales Executive Tolu Akinnugba Tolu@mortgageintroducer.com Advertising Sales Executive Jordan Ashford Jordan@mortgageintroducer.com Campaign Manager Victoria Hubbard Victoria@mortgageintroducer.com Production Editor Felix Blakeston Felix@mortgageintroducer.com Head of Marketing Robyn Ashman RobynA@mortgageintroducer.com Printed by The Magazine Printing Company, using only paper from FSC/PEFC suppliers www.magprint.co.uk

MORTGAGE

INTRODUCER

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The technology evolution

Contents

t’s not that the mortgage market didn’t want to embrace technology. It’s something that has been pushed for years, but has simply never taken off in the way that was envisaged. However, one of the very few positives to come out of the COVID-19 pandemic is that adoption of technology in the sector has been accellerated. The shock of the pandemic catapulted the industry into the future and forced lenders and brokers alike to adapt to the new normal. Lenders have had to find a way to adapt to keep up with a supercharged mortgage market, whilst their workforces predominately worked from home. Brokers have had to find ways to engage with lenders, but also to maintain and communicate with a client base that was unable, or unwilling, to engage in face-to-face meetings. The past 14 months has seen the emergence of a number of technology providers that offer solutions for the numerous challenges which emerged during the pandemic. And whilst the country now looks on track to return to some degree of pre-COVID normality, it now looks as though the mortgage market is set to keep the technological evolution going as we move beyond the pandemic. The next generation of borrowers will expect a more streamlined technological offering, so the increasing innovation seen over the past year or so could well prove timely. Natalie Thomas looks at the changing face of mortgage technology in our feature of Page 4, whilst we cover the highlights from our technology roundtable on Page 20. Here’s hoping that this change is the start of a new chapter for the mortgage market.

4 Feature: Looking to the future Natalie Thomas looks at how the market is coping with the changing technological landscape 10 Interview: Making Magic Tanjir Sugar gives us the lowdown on Mortgage Magic 13 Mark Dryden Have you staked your place in the ‘attention economy’? 15 Jack Tenwick The hidden opportunities in open banking 17 Ozgur Unlu Why technology belongs in the financial services industry 19 Jonathan Burridge All killer, no filler 20 Round-table: Evolve or dissolve Our panel of experts discussed the importance of modern technology, how suppliers can reduce broker apathy and how packagers are benefitting from modern systems 26 Neal Janells Get to know the people behind the tech

MAY 2021

MORTGAGE TECHNOLOGY

FEATURE

COVER

LOOKING TO THE FUTURE

MORTGAGE TECHNOLOGY MAY 2021

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FEATURE

COVER

Natalie Thomas looks at the rise of mortgage technology and asks whether the future has just begun

hen it comes to the use of technology, some mortgage firms have achieved more in the last 12 months than they have in the previous 12 years. The COVID-19 pandemic has forced many a lender and broker out of their comfort zone, and in doing so, opened their eyes to the opportunities and efficiencies technology can bring to the mortgage process. Yet while the mortgage sector has made substantial headway in recent times, the market’s digital revolution is arguably still in its infancy. With open banking on the horizon and fintech evolving at a rapid pace, the market we know today could look different still in a few years’ time.

RE-WIRED THINKING The mortgage sector’s move into the digital arena has been long-overdue. Once viewed as the brokers’ nemesis, technology has proved itself the saviour of many a firm during the pandemic, which in turn has changed perceptions among its doubters. Karen Rodrigues, sales director at conveyancing and legal services provider ULS Technology, says: “The mortgage market has been particularly slow in recognising the opportunities that come from the greater adoption of technology compared to other areas of financial services. “Necessity, however, has meant that even those tech sceptics have had to adapt and incorporate more technology into their everyday processes. “I’d like to think it has led to firms appreciating that the proper integration of technology can help them deliver a slicker and more satisfying experience.” Rodrigues believes technology cynics are now becoming the exception, rather than the rule. “Lenders and brokers have had to adjust and adapt over the past year – IT development plans have certainly been fast tracked,” she says. “This is a journey that we are all on together as an industry, and it may even lead to us working together more collaboratively in the future. It is very much the beginning and not the end. It’s a great time to be in our sector. Natalia Roshchupko, chief technology officer at digital buy-to-let (BTL) mortgage lender Molo, believes the → www.mortgageintroducer.com

MAY 2021 MORTGAGE TECHNOLOGY

FEATURE

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Has the market just adapted to tech or truly adopted it? Alan Fitzpatrick director of marketplace operations, Habito

OVID-19 has exposed the many problems that exist in the home buying industry, but it has also shown how technology, when used right, can smooth out the process. The pandemic forced the whole industry to work in new ways. Everyone who wasn’t already had to adapt to be remote-first. Traditional brokers couldn’t meet customers face-toface, homebuyers had to do virtual viewings, and lenders had to rely more on automated valuations. With buyers still rushing to beat the now extended stamp duty deadline, capacity has been strained across all service providers, particularly conveyancers and surveyors. Some have been so busy they won’t have had time to look up. Others will have used technology as a way to reduce costs, without thinking about how it could also reduce a burdensome process for customers. The pace of change over the last 12 months has been rapid. But true long-term adoption of technology will require even more energy and investment. Here’s how I see technology dragging mortgages into the 21st century: MORE CHOICE The majority of the estimated 20,000 mortgages in the market are the same. Similar rates, same penalties, same length of period. Machine learning can improve a lender’s product set and find out what combination of factors make for great risk-reward decisions and underserved customer segments. This could lead to new, more bespoke mortgage products that tackle real customer needs and problems. Offering real choice was

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a key driver behind our creation of Habito One, the UK’s only long-term fixed mortgage. MORE CLARITY A personalised mortgage dashboard could give customers regular, automatic updates on their application’s status and whereabouts, giving them more clarity as it goes through underwriting and approval. Once the mortgage is approved, tools within the dashboard could let them actively and dynamically manage their mortgage(s) from one place, including alerts around when to remortgage, or opportunities to overpay and pay more of their mortgage off sooner. MORE CERTAINTY Income verification, with HMRC application programming interfaces (APIs) and open finance APIs, added with search algorithms, could unlock huge value for customers. This could help confirm an applicant’s borrowing calculations from the get-go, eradicating the need for proof via printed bank statements a n d m e a n i n g t h at m o r tg a g e ‘illustrations’ and any bank decisions in principle reﬂect the likely decisions to come, avoiding any disappointment when it counts. E-signatures, Land Registry digitalisation and innovative product design will also help give customers more certainty as processes speed up. BETTER OUTCOMES The industry must transition, from adapting to use technology in a pandemic, to fully adopting technology to innovate for better customer experience. Then, we can change the homebuying process from being staid, linear and dominated by industry protectionism, to delivering real change. This will ultimately put money back into consumers’ pockets and create better outcomes for homebuyers.

MAY 2021

sector has seen a 30% increase in productivity through the use of technology. “The pandemic has played a major role in forcing the industry to rethink and readjust manual processes that have not been changed for decades,” she explains. “Previously, identity verification was done manually where a customer had to be face-to-face inside a branch, but now they can complete this check fully online in the comfort of their home through an automated service – this is just one example of how technology is streamlining the processes both for lenders and consumers. “This is just the beginning. We will see more automation happening not just in the customer journey, but also in the back-office processing. “With artificial intelligence [AI] and open banking, you will see better, faster, risk-free decisions. I would love to see the adoption of smart contracts in the industry, as I believe that’s where the true value lies for both consumers and lenders.” ALIGNED THINKING The mortgage market might have turned a page when it comes to its thinking around technology, but this is just the first step. Unlike some other areas of financial services, the smooth processing of a mortgage is reliant on not just one entity but several – with the broker-lender relationship at the heart of the transaction. Mark Lusted, chief executive officer of digital business solutions agency Dock9, says: “Brokers and lenders have not always been aligned, and the volume of rekeying needed by brokers to switch between different systems, and sometimes paper forms, is an example of this. “There’s also been the perspective of lenders that ‘if I make this big IT investment, will it increase sales? How long will it take to get a return on investment?’ All of which has led to inactivity or a delay in making any change. “As a result, often the first wave of new technology investment was focused on business-to-consumer use, such as product switch journeys, where a more immediate return could be demonstrated. “But this is changing, especially given the speed of turnaround for a decision and application has been a key deciding factor when choosing a lender during the stamp duty holiday period. “As more lenders and conveyancers adopt new technology it will be a clearer differentiator for customers and brokers when making the decision about a lender.” Indeed, the inﬂux of cases during the stamp duty holiday, combined with the challenges of doing business during COVID-19, quickly highlighted where the weakest links were. Lusted says that, while considerable progress has been made around the interaction between broker and www.mortgageintroducer.com

FEATURE

COVER lender at the electronic decisioning and application stage, there is still more to be done. One strand of the process that is still in need of modernisation is the conveyancing process. Lusted explains: “The pandemic and subsequent transaction volumes due to pent up demand and the stamp duty holiday have highlighted that we must find a better way. “I look forward to seeing how conveyancing panel managers seek to address some of the issues faced, although wider reform, for example with the Land Registry, is needed to truly improve the process.” Adam Foreshaw, managing director of O’Neill Patient Solicitors (ONP), believes that there are two key things that need to happen to speed up conveyancing. “The first is a greater use of technology, the second is all parties involved in a transaction working more closely together,” he says. “ONP has invested heavily in technology over the past couple of years, but there is still so much more that can be done across the industry as a whole to make the process much more seamless. “This includes apps that keep brokers and borrowers updated through every step of the process, through to technology that means information can be uploaded and passed instantly between every party – so no one is sitting waiting for the post to arrive. “The issues, particularly at the moment when volumes are so incredibly high, is workload at every step of the chain. “Improving the technology so that less human interaction is required and information is transferred seamlessly is absolutely key. “Conveyancers working collaboratively and closely with all other parts of the chain is then fundamental to speed things up.” Beth Rudolf, director of delivery at the Conveyancing Association, believes the key lies in the Buying and Selling Property Information form (BASPI). “By requiring valuers to ask the estate agent for the BASPI, Property Information Questionnaire [PIQ] or material facts this can avoid post-valuation queries, which currently take around 21 days to be dealt with and arise on a third of all mortgage instructions,” she explains. “The BASPI has been reviewed by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors [RICS], which has identified a valuer summary of 14 questions in the BASPI. If the valuer is aware of the correct information at valuation, they can avoid assumptions which lead to post-valuation queries [PVQs]. “Currently, conveyancers are holding for up to two hours to get through to the post-offer teams at lenders. “They traditionally have resourced pre-offer terms so as to appeal to mortgage brokers by being able to issue offers very quickly, but then the broker does not get paid because they do not resource the post-offer teams as fully, which results in completion taking place www.mortgageintroducer.com

on average 45 days after offer because of the PVQs and lack of resource at the lenders.” THE ARRIVAL OF OPEN BANKING Something that has the ability to free up resources for all parties is the onset of open banking. This has been steadily creeping into the mortgage market over the last few years, but is yet to fully make its mark. Open banking has the potential to revolutionise the mortgage process through the sharing of borrowers’ financial data between financial institutions, such as spending habits and regular payments, theoretically making it much easier to ascertain a borrower’s affordability – provided they give their consent for the information to be shared. “The benefits for brokers and lenders are clear: instant access to up-to-date, accurate financial information can speed up the process massively and reduce wasted time on cases that aren’t going to fit,” says Lusted. “There’s also the reduction in potential fraud, plus using this data alongside other data sources could enable hyper-personalised underwriting and products in future.” While the benefits may be clear, take-up has been slow, among both providers and borrowers. Lusted continues: “The slow adoption is due to a number of reasons, but from the outset it was driven by regulators and not real customer demand, so arguably it has been a case of technology looking for problems to solve, rather than the other way round. “Also, customer uptake of open banking has been a lot slower than many anticipated – although this is now changing as the benefits are becoming clearer, and as real products and use cases are coming to market.” Molo Finance, however, has been an early advocate of open banking. Roshchupko says: “We provide customers with an option during the onboarding journey to link their financial institution with the Molo account via open banking. “If they proceed, our decision engine is then able to perform real-time verification against transactional data. “We analyse and verify sources such as source of income, proof of deposit and other data that we need to take into consideration to make an optimal decision. “This drastically reduces the need for customers to source and provide documents, thus enhancing their experience and reduces the processing times.” While the usage of open banking has increased significantly, the fact remains that it has seen slow adoption from borrowers and brokers. “I think the major factors for customers not adopting it as fast as we hoped is that they think that it’s not secure enough due to full understanding what open banking is and what it does. “If we want to see a higher and faster adoption rate, as an industry we need to ensure we put customers’ privacy and security at the forefront of how we analyse → MAY 2021 MORTGAGE TECHNOLOGY

FEATURE

COVER and use data, as well as continuously educate them on what open banking is and what it does.” Roshchupko also believes a lot of lenders are taking a ‘wait and see’ approach, because the success of open banking still heavily depends on the customers adopting it. Richard Hayes, chief executive officer of online brokerage Mojo Mortgages, also believes that there is more lenders could be doing. “Open banking is very simple to use, super secure and negates the need for lots of paperwork completely – it will become the simplest way to get mortgage ready, providing certainty and clarity very early on for customers and lenders,” he explains. Nevertheless, there are lenders which do not accept banking statements created by their own open banking application programming interfaces (APIs) for a mortgage application. Hayes says: “All the tech is there, we just need the ecosystem to mature. “I really believe an end-to-end digital mortgage experience with access to humans at the crucial moments will be the norm in the coming years.” THE NEED FOR A HUMAN TOUCH Nevertheless, Hayes believes technology is only part of the future of mortgages. “Yes, technology has sped up the process and more can be done to help those who want to self-serve to get their mortgages even quicker, but the vast majority will always want to speak to a human and get an expert recommendation,” he explains. Indeed, the invention of any new fintech in the mortgage market inevitably raises questions as to whether it will pose a threat to the broker community, reducing the need for human input in the process. However, brokers can perhaps feel a little more reassured on this front after the events and learnings of the last 12 months. John Phillips, national operations director at Just Mortgages, says: “There will of course continue to be advances in technology and it is our job to adapt. “Technology is an asset to brokers as well as to borrowers. There are thousands of mortgage products on the market at any given time, and we need technology to identify those, but as for choosing the best product and the best lender for a client’s individual circumstances, that takes a professional mortgage broker who has the knowledge and the experience to guide someone through. “The overwhelming need and desire for this advice is abundantly clear right now with the number of people coming through our doors every day.” In conclusion, he says: “The one thing that the last year has shown is that things continue to change quickly, but that as an industry, we are up for the challenges and more than capable of changing with them.”

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Automation is key to a smoother mortgage process Todd Zino chief technology officer, Trussle

ike many other industries, the property market was upended when the UK went into lockdown in March 2020. While priorities shifted amid the pandemic, with tech roadmaps changing to meet the demands of working in a remote world, 2020 certainly highlighted the need for the industry to embrace change. Lenders’ lack of operational resilience was exposed by the implications of hurriedly moving to a remote working environment. SPEEDING UP THE PROCESS This caused lengthy processing delays at a time when demand for mortgages reached an all-time high due to pent up demand following the first lockdown, as well as the stamp duty holiday. Following what has been an extremely uncertain year, brokers and lenders are more aware than ever of the need to use technology to speed up the mortgage process. Technology can remove the risk of clerical error from manual keying of data between systems and ensure operational leverage at scale. CUSTOMER QUALIFICATION Brokers can also utilise data to better qualify customers ahead of submitting their application to a lender. This includes conducting credit searches, automated valuation models (AVMs) and richer affordability assessments. At Trussle, we’ve deployed automated electronic identity verification (EIDV), which makes the process easier for our customers and enables our advisers to package loan application materials more efficiently. More accurate customer qualification pre-submission goes a long way to

reducing the number of mortgage applications that are declined, allowing lenders and brokers to spend their time on applications that are almost certain of approval. Most importantly, it gives customers more certainty on their home financing. At Trussle, we’ve seen automated valuations reduce decline rates, since there are less subsequent downvaluations by lenders. AUTOMATING THE JOURNEY This means more cost for the broker but less cost, time and frustration in the overall process. Automating more of the journey to allow customer self-service with questions, documents and calculations would provide better qualification, more suitable cases for approvals and a smoother customer experience. Technologies including open banking also have the potential to make the mortgage journey easier for customers and lenders. Open banking would reduce the manual time spent on an application by enabling underwriters to answer most of their own questions without having to revert to the broker or customer. When implemented correctly, open banking can also save the customer a lot of time and stress around aggregating multiple statements to collate for a broker. PRE-APPROVAL Some high street lenders already offer mobile sign ups, which can fully authorise and process all necessary statement documentation in under one minute. Once lender policy and customer journey integrations become more widely available, it will be possible for customers to get pre-approved for certain mortgage products in the same time it takes to set up open banking checks on their device.

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SPOTLIGHT

MORTGAGE MAGIC

MAKING Tanjir Sugar, chief executive at Mortgage Magic, tells Mortgage Introducer about his reasons for creating the business, how it differs from other CRM providers, and plans for the next 12 months Tell us about Mortgage Magic. As mortgage brokers ourselves, Mortgage Magic (MM) was born out of our frustration with the existing crop of legacy software providers for managing a mortgage broking business, and the multiple yet incompatible means of interacting with lenders, many of which were still manual. Mortgage Magic’s principals teamed up with Silicon Valley technology specialists to produce a complete digital business management platform specifically designed for the UK mortgage industry. It marries a cutting edge customer relationship management (CRM) facility with a seamless front end which follows the customer journey from enquiry to completion. The platform incorporates all the latest technology features to enable mortgage advisers to efficiently and compliantly conduct their business, including mortgage and protection sourcing integration, where required. What was the main reason for creating MM? Without meaningful competition in the space, the UK lending market was burdened with older legacy based systems in areas from sourcing to customer management, with few alternatives against which to compare existing suppliers. In the absence of viable alternatives, the intermediary sector put up with the hindrance of working with antiquated facilities that rarely worked as hoped or could be integrated with other services. The only reason they had lasted that long was that in the absence of new thinking and viable competition, suppliers had little incentive to innovate. By way of

MORTGAGE TECHNOLOGY MAY 2021

illustration, we only have to see what happened when a disruptor like Twenty7Tec arrived in the sourcing market a few years ago. That ignited a long overdue spurt of positive activity, which has led to better sourcing systems through greater innovation than at any time in the past 10 to 15 years. In a highly regulated environment like mortgages, there has also been a reluctance to engage and integrate meaningful compliance modules into existing systems. The main reason being that up to now most of those who understood technology knew little about regulation, and those who understood regulatory compliance were not technology-focused. As a result, this vital piece of the mortgage adviser puzzle has been neglected. So, like Twenty7Tec in the sourcing market, Mortgage Magic is bringing innovation and modern methodology to bear in order to produce a platform for today’s industry, rather than yesterday’s. As a mortgage broker, I knew what had been missing and was in the best position to bring to bear the talents necessary to tackle the issues and create an end-to-end enquiry to completion facility, married to a fully General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and regulatory compliant customer management service. Powerful, cost-effective and easy to adopt. How is Mortgage Magic’s approach different to other suppliers using blockchain technology? I am unaware of any commercially active supplier in our sector which has incorporated blockchain into its tech stack. Our methodology is very unique and is our own invention. www.mortgageintroducer.com

SPOTLIGHT

MORTGAGE MAGIC

MAGIC If you could describe Mortgage Magic in three words, what would they be? Future-proof mortgage technology. How do you differ from other CRM providers? It’s as different as night is from day. No other provider currently offers the same package of an end-to-end client-centred modular mortgage, protection and overall customer management system in one simple to use package. MM manages the customer journey from data entry through the whole lifetime of the relationship with the adviser. There is nothing in the same space which is even close to MM’s platform.

We are fully focused on creating an evolving and robust platform which will enable mortgage advisers and other financial brokers to benefit from an always up to date end-to-end experience. Coming down the line, we have a lot of new exciting new features, such as full UK lender integration, augmented advice and a new digital package for brokers, to name just a few innovations in the pipeline. At Mortgage Magic our motto is ‘collaboration via effective integration’. Tanjir Sugar

Mortgage Magic is a cloud-based platform. What is the guarantee of data security? We only use IBM infrastructure. IBM being a pioneer in security and one of the most respected players in the world ensures that data security is maintained without compromise. Our data security is guaranteed by IBM’s data security charter. As the market gets more competitive, what are your plans to stay ahead of the competition? This is the age of collaboration rather than competition. We are keen to collaborate across the industry, as can be seen by our integration with Twenty7Tec and iPipeline, as well as our work with specialist finance hub Brightstar, where we are employing our expertise to build the new platform to engage introducers, partners and service providers more effectively. I am very eager to work with other businesses, not only to improve our platform, but enhance every business with which we work. The greater the level of collaboration, the better it will be for the industry as a whole. There is room for everyone to benefit, so we welcome the chance to talk with all industry stakeholders, such as mortgage brokers, networks, lenders and other service and product providers. www.mortgageintroducer.com

MAY 2021 MORTGAGE TECHNOLOGY

Technology is fundamental to your business, so is your revenue. At the MCI mortgage club, we balance the two. Technology that drives adoption, efficiency and couples your clients to your business, while generating you more revenue through market leading rebates. Our package also includes:

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 Find out how your business could earn more revenue with MCI today and how we blend technology and market leading rebates into one easy stable solution. Visit: mciclub.com/tech | Call: 01275 400 669 | Email: enquiries@mciclub.com

MCI Club is part of

REVIEW

INNOVATION

Your place in the ‘attention economy’ Charles McDowell Mark Dryden managing director – specialist director, mortgages, technical HTB DPR

ight now I’ve got your attention, and for that I’m grateful. In fact, many people are grateful to talk with the right people, to be seen with the right people and for the opportunity to be heard by the right people. In terms of personal interactions, attention is generally freely given and often freely accepted. But what of technology where attention is a commodity, and where our attention has been slowly and surely bartered and traded away. From shouting in the street to books, radio and television, our free time has been eroded, and our individual attention is craved. Modern day technology has simply accelerated this erosion, where incumbents such as television and newspapers fight a losing but valiant battle against apps, games, internet sites, multimedia channels and the ‘influencers’ knowingly or unknowingly using these platforms. MANTAINING ATTENTION

The ‘attention economy’ is now a highly evolved market where attention is not simply about ‘grabbing’, it is about maintaining that attention and playing into our core motivations and the psychological needs that keep us engaged. Why? Because that is where the money is, where the advertisers can ply their trade, and even you are (possibly) culpable by being involved. Whether you’re scrolling Twitter, waiting for an advert to finish to watch a video, or replying to Uncle Colin’s update about a bad day with a “you OK hun?” you are involved, and you are giving them what they crave, your www.mortgageintroducer.com

precious attention. This is the new economy, and your job as a broker has just got harder. Typically, mortgage clubs do not particularly get involved in the attention economy; after all, it is driven by technology. For the MCI Club, we are a technology mortgage club! Our mandate is to provide innovative ways to support our members, either through additional revenue generation or by taking them to the next level in terms of technology tooling – the tools that allow our members to compete in this new economy. DIGITAL RELATIONSHIP

Many, of course, succumb to the inevitable by dabbling. Online can be a rich source of leads, whether through social media platforms, localised online advertising, or by clever promotion of online content or updates. In fact, our research reveals that well-executed online activity does pay dividends, but once you have got that attention – what are you doing with it? This is where MCI Club is taking the lead through its technology offering. Getting customers to the door isn’t the end of the journey, it is the beginning. Done right, it will be the beginning of something more special, something that is treasured throughout the attention economy: a relationship, and a digital one at that. Because when you are in a relationship, you are a team, you have a common goal or issue to resolve, and all parties can then work together to achieve what needs to be done. For example, our members using the Burrow onboarding, portal and retention tooling are staking their place in the attention economy without the millions of pounds of investment normally required to genuinely compete in that space. We’re not talking of just grabbing attention at the start of the mortgage

and protection journey, it’s how to seize it to deliver genuine value and a service that your customers are not only seeking, but have been conditioned to expect. We start by taking the initial engagement, extracting qualified information to generate an indicative mortgage report – all digitally, and all without the efforts of a qualified adviser within Burrow. AUTOMATED WORKFLOW

The adviser journey is structured within free customer relationship manager (CRM) eKeeper Lite, which receives the opportunity data, allowing the adviser to perform their anti-money laundering (AML), credit checks and other due-diligence activities. As the opportunity is nurtured, the Burrow portal allows the broker to elegantly pass tasks to the customer, such as providing documentation, obtaining electronic signatures, acknowledging documents, and submitting a client fact-find. As the advice process progresses, the full CRM comes into its own through third-party integrations into mortgage and protection sourcing, document creation and storage, conveyancing, compliance, and automated workflow. During this, the Burrow portal continues to build the digital relationship by exchanging additional information as well as status updates. Assuming another outstanding advice outcome by the broker, Burrow Retention maintains the relationship, keeping you in the mind of your clients with regular updates and a qualified standard variable rate (SVR) to new product comparison as the client approaches their deal end date, with clear re-engagement steps. This is just the start, but as a member of the MCI Club, you are already ahead of the competition, you have got your stake in the attention economy and tools to keep you there. All this what you traditionally also get from a mortgage club with an expanding lender panel, member support, communications, and an innovate payment and rebate package that delivers timely revenue to your business. Welcome to the future, today. MAY 2021 MORTGAGE TECHNOLOGY

HOW OPEN BANKING CAN SPEED UP MORTGAGE ONBOARDING AND HELP LENDERS GROW

As many European markets are seeing strong growth in house prices, the lending industry is benefiting. But not every lender will win equally from this period of growth. As digital transformation takes hold of all industries, lenders that continue to rely on manual processes and are slow to embrace the opportunities of digitalisation will not benefit as much from all the opportunities at hand. THE LOST OPPORTUNITY HIDDEN IN CURRENT MORTGAGE ONBOARDING PROCESSES One area in which manual processes still generate far too much work is mortgage onboarding. Currently, mortgage applicants send a great deal of unstructured data to their prospective lender, including pdfs, scans of bank statements, and many other pieces of information in different formats. This creates work for the applicant and slows down the onboarding process. And on the lender side, you need to use this unstructured data to build up an accurate financial profile of applicants. The entire process can take months. Enter open banking. THE ONBOARDING PROCESS POWERED BY OPEN BANKING You are probably familiar with the concept of open banking, but to briefly recap, the principle is that banks must share account data with third parties, under strict regulations, including that the account holder (be they an individual or business) must give their consent. This is a simple concept. However, it offers a ground-breaking advantage for early movers in the mortgage lending industry, by enabling you to almost instantly build an accurate, detailed, up-to-date financial profile of your applicant, without any manual processes, and free of unstructured data and human error. Among other things, the accuracy and speed of working with Open Banking in this manner allows you to do the following: • • • • • •

Verify applicants’ identities much more quickly. Make faster and better-informed credit and affordability decisions. Reduce fraud risk. Provide a better customer experience due to the speed and ease of onboarding. Speed up your cash flow due to being able to close deals more quickly. Access a greater market share of people who are unable to access traditional forms of credit. This is a significant group - numbering 6-8 million in the UK, for example.

With all these enormous benefits, why wouldn’t you, as a lending organisation, adopt this technology? THREE KEY CHALLENGES TO SUCCESS WITH OPEN BANKING There are several reasons why open banking solutions have not yet been grasped with open hands by mortgage lenders. Fortunately, with the right knowledge and partnerships, none of these are serious blockers. 1. Level of awareness The first challenge is one that can work in favour of nimble lenders - awareness. As a relatively new technology with mostly unexplored potential, many lenders and consumers alike are still unaware of the potential benefits. Organisations that take time to research the market, talk to vendors, and educate their customers about the benefits will have a first-mover advantage in this space. A key thing to note here is that telling customers what open banking is, will not work. Instead, lenders should focus on showing the benefits of being in control of their own data, and how they can use it to make smarter choices. 2. Security When you are dealing with sensitive financial data, security is your number one concern. It is important to note here that open banking is a highly regulated field. To operate any open banking service, you must be licensed by the FCA. Lenders can apply for this license themselves, but this is a time-consuming process. They can also work under the license of approved vendors, such as Yolt Technology Services (YTS). 3. Building the connections Businesses can build their own connections to the banks. But there are several important advantages to partnering with an established player such as YTS. One key advantage is that you do not create an ongoing and unnecessary technical workload by maintaining the connections. And the flipside of this advantage is that the resources you would have invested into building your own connections can then be deployed on building your own solutions, giving you an extra competitive edge. CONCLUSION With the European mortgage market heating up, and many lenders not yet aware of the potential of open banking, now is the time to act. Visit yts.yolt.com for more information.

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OPEN BANKING

How open banking can help lenders Mortgage Introducer spoke with Jack Tenwick, head of sales, UK at Yolt Techology Services (YTS)

an you tell us a bit about how YTS and how it helps businesses?

Yes sure. You may have heard of the smart money app Yolt. After launching this app in 2017, we wanted to help businesses unlock the value of open banking. So we took the technology that powered Yolt onto the open market with the launch of YTS, a businessto-business (B2B) open banking technology proposition. We were instrumental to bringing open banking in the UK in 2018, working closely with both the Open Banking Implementation Entity and the FCA. Today, YTS is the leading open banking provider in Europe, building, managing, and maintaining Account Information Services (AIS) and open banking Payment (PIS) connections for financial institutions, lenders, utility companies, tech businesses, and more. Since that first API call in 2017, we’re now close to making over one billion calls – a sure sign of the increasing demand for our solutions. How can open banking technology create a smoother mortgage process for lenders? In the post-COVID-19 landscape, we’re seeing the mortgage industry as one that has been severely aﬀected-but not in the way you may think. Unlike many other industries who have suﬀered from loss of revenue and custom, the mortgage sector is booming. And with that comes its own share of issues. A recent report form the Bank of England reported net mortgage borrowing reached a record £11.8bn in March - the highest figure since records began. With the extension of the Help to

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Jack Tenwick

Buy scheme, and by the stamp duty holiday, mortgage applications have swelled and there are good reasons to suggest that the sector, could benefit hugely from the efficiency improvements and growth potential that open banking can offer. For example, Account information services (AIS) give a clear and instant insight into the financial activities of current and prospective customers – with that individual’s permission. For a broker assessing a mortgage application, the information made available by AIS would allow the lender to verify the applicant’s identity and significantly reduce the time each application takes, whilst also helping the customer to find products relevant to their needs much faster than could be achieved manually. As such, brokers can not only plan their services more efficiently, but the consumer will have a much-improved and personalised experience that will encourage them to use the service again – which is significant, given the importance of client retention in the UK mortgage market. What are the benefits of using an open banking API aggregator like YTS? At YTS we’re democratising open banking so that businesses of all sizes

can unlock the potential for their business. With technology like this, which is complex by its very nature, we’re simplifying the process by building and maintaining the connections needed between bank, consumer and business. This means that businesses can immediately harness the power of open banking through our ready-made APIs with little investment and without dedicated resource from within the business itself. As an API aggregator, we’re subject to the same security and licensing regulations as financial institutions and businesses. In fact, YTS is a venture of ING Bank N.V. and that ensures that our security standards and approach to risk remain above par and core to our DNA. Where do you see open banking in the next five years? The hope is that open banking will develop to facilitate a truly open financial system, with consumers and businesses able to access their entire financial footprint, not just for mortgage applications, but for bills, utilities and much more in one central place. This ambition appears more likely after the COVID-19 pandemic, with many digital trends accelerated, including the mass adoption of banking apps. The government has relaunched an independent review into the fintech industry as a result of this accelerated progress, while the FCA has opened a call for input on open finance too. We’re excited about where the future of open banking will take us and how the benefits to both businesses and consumers alike will revolutionise sectors in desperate need of innovation. MAY 2021

MORTGAGE TECHNOLOGY

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Our comprehensive FactFind seamlessly integrates with our sourcing partners saving advisers 45 to 90 minutes of data entry per FactFind

Make managing leads easy, with our Hotbox you can record when and how you contacted your clients keeping you up to date

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Who are we? 360 Lifecycle is a complete end to end practice management system, with powerful client engagement tools that streamlines processes for financial advisers and their clients. We provide everything you need to run a successful business in this technology driven time.

We have over 6,000 users with over 2,000 brands across nationals, networks and small brokerages

s &

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FINTECH

Technology belongs in ﬁnancial services Charles McDowell Ozgur Unlu managing director – specialist mortgages, managing director, HTBDotnet 360

oing into 2021, the expectation was a new year, a fresh start and that the pandemic would be nearing the end. The start of 2021 came as a continuation of 2020, more than we expected, with the same working and living situation, and the pandemic still looming over us. In the past year, technology has been vital for success and eﬃciency in most sectors, and has significantly impacted the way businesses operate. In financial services it has been paramount from the start, allowing advisers to navigate the mortgage, protection and general insurance (GI) process digitally. For those who have not adopted technology, trying to run their business has been problematic. Advisers have a colossal amount of paperwork to contend with, even after one client. Advisers also face delays in receiving documents back, which can impact the process, disrupting the journey and customer relationships. When the pandemic struck the UK housing market was placed on hold,

Tech allows advisers to stay ahead of their competitors

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which created fear and uncertainty until it reopened. Different phases of lockdown continued, and people began to – and still may – feel isolated in apartments with no garden and no freedom to roam. Now a year later, the extension of the stamp duty holiday coinciding with the warmer months ahead has unleashed a surge of buyers and sellers. These factors led to the increase of mortgage, insurance and GI applications, and technology has been crucial for advisers to keep up with the higher application volumes. As adviser and customer circumstances and prospects are forever changing, digital mortgage, protection and GI processes are a necessity. The businesses that have adapted are coming out stronger than the traditional advisers who are not realising the advantages it can have for their business. Tech allows advisers to stay ahead of their competitors and keep up to date with the ever-changing environment. For those advisers who were running a paperless business beforehand, the transition to new techologies was a more straightforward one. Adapting to technology meant they could still communicate eﬃciently with their clients, and the need for face-to-face meetings became a thing of the past.

It is evident that advisers have found many benefits to adopting technology, whether that is reducing costs, increasing efficiencies in the data gathering process, or staying in touch with customers. Shaun Almond, managing director at HLPartnership, said: “The past year has demonstrated the value mortgage and insurance technology delivers to today’s modern adviser. “Whether face-to-face or remote, it is essential advisers have a comprehensive data capturing tool which integrates with sourcing and criteria engines. “It is more important than ever before that an adviser can access their data, identify opportunities to meet needs, and ultimately stay in touch with customers. “Technology provides the ability to create a loyal, engaged client base, a great customer experience through accurate sourcing, and real efficiencies as comprehensive integrations allow the easy movement of data.” The fintech industry was carrying out digital mortgage, insurance and GI applications before the pandemic, and 2020 fuelled this process for advisers. After 2021, clients will still expect the same level of speed and efficiency. Advisers need to use this experience to continue to provide the same level of service. As we can now start to envision the future, the benefits that the digital world offers will not be forgotten, especially for those businesses that will continue to work from home. The changes the past year has brought upon the industry are becoming permanent. These include the desire for a sleek digital mortgage, insurance and GI process. Advisers need to realise the efficiency of this modernised world so they can continue to see the benefits technology can bring them to help them serve their clients. Technology belongs in the finance space; the past year has clearly made that apparent. Technology will not stop driving the industry, it will continue to flourish, improve efficiencies and help the sector to expand. It is up to advisers whether to adapt technology and embrace the change that will forever benefit their business. MAY 2021

MORTGAGE TECHNOLOGY

T H U R S D AY 2 4 J U N E 2 0 2 1 | O N L I N E V I S I T W W W. S F I A W A R D S . C O . U K

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ADVICE

Mortgage advisers are human, not dancers Charles McDowell Jonathan managing director Burridge – specialist mortgages, director, HTBAre Money We

he other day I was exploring data relating to Google searches whilst listening to old Killers album. Whilst online, I realised just how competitive the first-time buyer (FTB) market is. I guess I wasn’t really surprised. After all, many see first-time buyers as the lifeblood of the market. Whilst listening, I realised I could answer the question “are we human, or are we dancer?” Looking at FTB searches, it was clear, along with MoneySupermarket, it was the big lenders dominating the organic search results – which does not happen by magic – and one or two had been spending reasonable sums of money on paid adverts too. This got me thinking, are we beginning to see the signs of lenders reversing the trend of a broker dominated market? I believe in cycles, and that the dominance we have enjoyed will end; so, should I be worried?

lender, others will want and appreciate advice. Some will not want to pay the adviser, others value sage experience and will are happy to be charged. But we must remember, first-time, second-time and third-time buyers, and landlords, all have choices. It is up to us brokers to offer what they want and continue to retain a healthy share of the market. TECHNO, TECHNO

It has been discussed for many years now that the bigger lenders will attract more people directly through technological advances. Cases such as simple remortgages and product transfers, perhaps. This means that us intermediaries should also invest in and adopt technology, but we still have a big advantage: us. People will still want to blend human advice with the expectation that good technology to make things easier for them. If they don’t want that then they

will be the people going direct and are not our type of client. USE OUR STRENGTHS AS A COMPETITIVE EDGE

It would be easy for me to wave flag in despair and say that lenders are stealing our business, but I would be wrong. The business is not there to be stolen. Clients are not possessions, they are people. Instead, we intermediary folk will continue to add value through technology, and because we are human and can give a broader view of the market and a more personable service. If one of my clients chooses to talk to a lender directly, that is my fault, not the lender’s. It’s all about accountability, and it’s all about adding value. That value is us – us humans. We must never forget the value of that – humans have the ability to create, build and nurture relationships. After all, people do not have relationships with brands. They do not trust brands. They trust people who build relationships with them. First-time buyers who seek advice from brokers can build relationships for the longer-term in the way that the big boys can’t. Let’s never forget our unique position; we are human, not dancer.

THE MARKET IS NOT HOMOGENOUS

Many industry commentators believe there will be a market share adjustment, yet I remain very pragmatic. Maybe it is because I have become very long in the incisor department, or that I know that we all have choices in life. After all, competition is good, and I do not want to deal with any old FTB; I want to talk to those who value professional advice and who do not want to go and speak with the big corporations thinking they can get a better rate. The market is not homogenous. Some will prefer to go direct to a www.mortgageintroducer.com

Intermediaries should invest in and adopt technology

MAY 2021 MORTGAGE TECHNOLOGY

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TECHNOLOGY

EVOLVE OR

DISSOLVE At Mortgage Introducer’s round-table, the panel discussed the importance of modern technology, how suppliers can reduce broker apathy and how packagers are beneﬁting from modern systems

ince March 2020, coronavirus has dominated agendas, but with an end in sight, it is now possible to look past COVID-19 and consider what the future holds. There is no doubt that technology will have a substantial role to play. The onset of lockdowns and social distancing drove a considerable uptick in the use and advancement of technology, both in the mortgage market and the UK as a whole. However, this sudden necessity to find workarounds arguably only accelerated a change that was already in the works. This has put the market under a microscope, with industry figures looking to improve operations and increase efficiency, as well as considering the wider questions around whether brokers must adapt to a changing world, and how the market can move forward together, without losing the personal connections that make it work.

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At Mortgage Introducer’s technology round-table, a panel of experts from Mortgage Magic, Brightstar Group, Access Financial Services, Yolt, MCI/Ekeeper Group, The Money Group, Meet Parker, 360 and John Charcol spoke about the stance of networks and clubs in relation to tech, and whether some may be left behind during this technology evolution. ADOPTING MODERN TECHNOLOGY Before the pandemic made for innovation out of necessity, it was already true that to provide the best customer journey, businesses should have the right systems in place. Scott Thorpe, head of partnerships at The Money Group, says: “You cannot build a good service proposition without technology. A good mortgage broker needs to be able to constantly contact their clients in order to keep up to date with them.

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TECHNOLOGY “The importance of modern technology is absolutely crucial, and brokers will need to get on board if they want to thrive.” Thorpe goes on to explain that this is particularly the case for those who intend to grow their business. Karl Wilkinson, co-founder and chief executive of Access Financial Services, adds that customers have less time nowadays, which makes the use of technology to speed up processes essential. He says: “Clients no longer have the time to participate in an hour and a half meeting with a broker. Technology will bring the broker closer with the customer and enhance the journey.” Cutting down on elongated meetings, and particularly the travel time between them if being conducted faceto-face, also has a positive effect on streamlining brokers’ workloads. Nick Morrey, product technical manager at John Charcol, believes the adoption of modern technology goes much further than this, infiltrating all elements of a business. He says: “Oversight, client engagement, retention and productivity all hinge on the application of IT. “Doing anything manually is time consuming and inefficient. What is also crucial is the harmonisation of IT systems and processes, but that is not easy!” Mark Dryden, technical director of MCI/Ekeeper Group, believes that this is not just a case of making the work easier, but of meeting consumer demand, as technology and online platforms are now the norm across all walks of life. This was the case before the world went into lockdown and began relying on video conferencing, remote communications, online networks and automated systems for everything, from ordering groceries to checking in with loved ones, pushing the need for modern processes into overdrive.

“The importance of modern technology is absolutely crucial, and brokers will need to get on board if they want to thrive” SCOTT THORPE

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“Technology must be at the heart of a business, you constantly have to innovate and evolve in order to compete” TANJIR SUGAR

Leon Muis, chief business officer at Yolt, says: “COVID-19 has accelerated what was already going to happen, in terms of an advancement in the use of technology. Clients do not have the time for lengthy conversations, and they also expect a fast process and transaction, therefore the use of technology is pivotal.” Dhaneer Popat, head of sales and account management at 360 Dotnet, which saw upwards of 50,000 client fact-finds through 360 Lifecycle in 2020, believes that the change from brokers seeing clients face-to-face to working from home and having virtual meetings adds to this, and that service and quality of work will improve as a result. He says: “Advisers who have embraced technology are finding out that it is crucial for their businesses. Technology means advisers can focus on their clients rather than having to worry about their files, security and organising their day-to-day processes. “It is pivotal, but it also has long-term benefits like the continual flow of repeat business resulting in a constant generation of revenue. “Those who refuse to move with the times are increasingly at risk of seeing clients dry up as they desert in favour of more tech-savvy competitors.” Muis says: “What people want is reassurance over the mortgage process, reassurance they are making the correct decisions and at the right time.” Tanjir Sugar, director at Mortgage Magic, believes that the industry as a whole needs to work to make technology easier to understand and handle, for both customers and brokers. “What we have to understand is that brokers themselves are not tech experts, so we must simplify in order to help them in assisting customers,” he says. “Technology is here to stay, and having an advanced tech platform and offering improves efficiency and enhances the customer’s journey.” →

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TECHNOLOGY

“COVID-19 has accelerated what was already going to happen, in terms of an advancement in the use of technology” LEON MUIS

However, Rob Jupp, chief executive of Brightstar Group, does not necessarily agree that technology is the most important factor in the mortgage process. “Technology is important, and I believe it will become increasingly important, but a business’ company culture is more important than its tech offering,” he explains. “Customer service is essential, as many new businesses have recently proved by starting a company within this sector and only focusing on tech, which is a sure-fire way to lose a lot of money.” IMPROVING BROKER UPTAKE Despite the general consensus around its importance, a high proportion of brokers are not yet using backoffice technology. Dryden says: “Brokers are very adaptable, what they know is that they need to provide a certain experience to their customers and one thing they want to avoid is coming across as an order taker. “That is why you find a lot of brokers prefer to conduct a paper-based fact-find and meet clients face-to-face.” However, this trend does look to be changing. Research from online broker forum cherry found that 47% of mortgage intermediaries are looking to acquire a customer relationship management (CRM) system for the first time. In addition, 23% expressed their interest in purchasing an affordability calculator, 18% were looking to invest in criteria sourcing and 12% in product sourcing – all for the first time. The data from cherry also reveals that 33% of respondents said they were happy with their current provider, but 28% highlighted CRM systems as a tool they were looking to replace, and 18% pointed to potentially upgrading their criteria sourcing. Dryden goes on to explain that technology must be analysed in what its initial usefulness is and how

MORTGAGE TECHNOLOGY

MAY 2021

effective it is, rather than being adopted simply for the sake of it. Any strategy for technological advancement must also take into account user preferences and trends. For example, Sugar says: “An efficient platform is one that connects aspects of the technological process with a mobile app for the clients and greatly improves the journey and overall satisfaction. “People are used to using a mobile on a daily basis, therefore if they can complete steps such as a fact-find, electronic verification and track progression on their phone, this improves the client’s journey.” Sugar believes that in the future, mobile banking could assist with the speed and efficiency; however, currently he does not think lenders are prepared to allow for this shift. Muis adds that Yolt has also seen lenders being restrictive on open banking technology; however, he expects this to gradually change. He says: “CRMs combined with open banking are important to improving and moving technology forward, the two go hand-in-hand for brokers.” Nevertheless, there are still stumbling blocks to be navigated, even with all the benefits of advancing tech solutions. Freddie Savundra, founder of Meet Parker, says: “We tried to do the full fact-find online, but this incurred dropout rates; we tried to do the fact-find over Whatsapp, but again we found there were drop-out rates. “You have got to keep the technology realistic to what is actually going to help and not push tech just for the sake of it. You have got to find the soft points that work for the client and for a business and then build on those.” Morrey believes that there is something of a barrier to take-up and understanding due to the fact that many IT experts speak a different ‘language’ to the

“You have got to keep the technology realistic to what is actually going to help and not push tech just for the sake of it” FREDDIE SAVUNDRA

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TECHNOLOGY end users. The market might, therefore, benefit from the presence of more third-parties to help smooth the process. He says: “[Advancement] might be better served by employing ex-brokers to sell the systems, and considering partnering with other providers to understand how their systems can integrate together making adoption easier. “Another big issue is that in developing areas of technology we do not want to be signing up to new providers that may fall by the wayside or just be simply not up to the task as that space evolves. “Therefore, many brokers will simply hold back from a decision until a front-runner emerges.” Despite this potential reluctance, Popat believes that technology is forever going to be integral to the financial services industry, used to grow businesses and their revenues. Therefore, advisers need to be informed of the benefits, he says: “Advisers need to be aware how much it can impact them with increased productivity and a shorter, quicker more efficient mortgage, protection and [general insurance (GI)] process. “A CRM system can often seem like a time-consuming option that is expensive and too complex. Advisers should not fear this, they should only be anxious of their competitors adopting technology before they do.” Popat adds that a CRM should be the single point of reference in terms of an adviser’s data, so that it is held securely. He says: “You can use it for reporting, marketing to clients and reconciling payments all through the sales journey. All data is recorded in a central area which you can report on or query for various communication methods or business processes.” Sugar expresses the importance of simplification, he says: “If you provide a client with too many options they do not know what to choose, this is why it is important to find the right balance. “Give a client something that works and is effective. Tech does not need to be overly complex, the point is to improve efficiency and speed up processes.” PATH TO FULL INTEGRATION Packagers are also benefitting from modern systems, a trend which Jupp believes is vital to their future success. However, he says: “The challenge we have as packagers is that we operate over a variety of product lines with lenders which utilise a number of different

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systems. Therefore, to create a platform which meets all the criteria required is not quite impossible, but close to it.” Sugar agrees that this will take work from the market: “This is the age of collaboration. The more we collaborate across the industry the easier it will become to create a platform which combines all aspects of the mortgage journey with all parts of the industry involved, will significantly positively impact the market. “A platform like this could reduce the home buying process from six months to a few days – it is possible.” Morrey adds: “In an ideal world we would want one overriding CRM system that is simple to use and modify, but then either has its own client portals and sourcing systems or plugs into those seamlessly. “We would also want them linked to our websites and phone systems, as well as lender systems.” Sugar says: “At Mortgage Magic, we are open to any kind of integration; I believe that full integration between

“The one thing brokers want to avoid is coming across as an order taker. That’s why a lot prefer to conduct paperbased fact-finds and meet face-to-face” MARK DRYDEN service providers to advisers and tech companies is fundamentally important to the industry. “From our perspective, what we seek to understand is where advisers and tech companies want to integrate within our systems.” Sugar explains that once this has been established, Mortgage Magic is willing and able to begin to collaborate and integrate its systems. However, it is not a simple process, he warns: “The main obstacles are money and time, it will happen eventually.” Jupp does not believe integration between service providers, advisers and tech companies is far along, which he attributes to the high level of activity in the market, in addition to other market factors. “Integration has regressed,” he says. “Prior to the financial crash, technology was further along within the industry and integration was more progressed. →

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TECHNOLOGY “The actual technology available now is far more advanced; however, it is being held back by older intermediaries who do not want to utilise new tech.” Jupp explains that integration may have to wait until these reluctant parties have aged out of the industry. Sugar agrees that technology prior to the financial crash was further along than it is currently. He adds: “There was a massive technology input seen around 2008 as brokers moved away from paper-based material to digital in order to process applications. “From that point until now there has not been much innovation within the financial services sector. This is largely due to the industry being heavily regulated; however, now we are starting to see the implementation of platforms to assist with the process.” Wilkinson agrees, adding: “The progression to full integration has been incredibly slow. “We have heard about the benefit of connecting to all lenders’ back offices for years, but this still has not been developed. “The progression of CRMs has been slower than the advancement of technology; it will take some fresh younger industry figures to come in and push the integration forward for it to happen.” Popat says: “A solid and flexible solution like 360 Lifecycle will benefit considerably from being able to deliver a fully integrated solution in the future.” He explains that as part of this approach, when 360 Dotnet was informed through feedback that anti-money laundering (AML) and electronic ID verification were becoming a requirement among many businesses, it took this on board, and is due to launch it in summer 2021. Savundra believes the path to full integration should include all commonly used social media applications, as he points out: “The younger generations use social media on a day-to-day basis, therefore this needs to be incorporated into the process.” He adds: “Physical copies of documents will be required at various points during the property purchase, and therefore I think to get everyone onto the same page with regard to full integration is incredibly slim. “However, I could see the big six and maybe one or two up and coming challenger banks eventually enabling end-to-end integration and removing the need for physical documents to be posted.”

“The mortgage clubs we engage with are real advocates of technology and see the benefits of firms using a centralised CRM system to maintain uniformity and processes” DHANEER POPAT 24

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“Integration has regressed, prior to the financial crash, technology was further along within the industry and integration was more progressed” ROB JUPP While the market works its way towards full integration, albeit slowly, Thorpe points out that there are other ways to streamline processes that can be implemented in the meantime, which are more reliant on relationships. He says: “From a broker perspective, while integration is important and it benefits the process, if you have good advisers then that is an alternative way to improve and speed up the activity.” NETWORKS AND TECH Looking to why mortgage networks and clubs have not taken a stronger stance towards technology among their members, Thorpe points to the cost element. He says: “If you look around, the amount of money spent on tech in terms of CRMs, sourcing and integration is reaching huge numbers. “You cannot expect clubs to be spending that amount of money on tech which quickly goes out of date. “The club’s job is to put the lender and broker closer to together, and the technology does not need to be incredibly advanced in order to achieve this.” Nevertheless, Dryden says: “Technology should be in the mandate of a mortgage club to some degree; however, due to the cost aspect, it is neglected. “It is important that a mortgage club is able to assist with the technological aspect of the process as well as all the other ways it does.” A lack of endorsement among networks and clubs is not universal, according to Popat, who says: “The mortgage clubs we engage with on a regular basis are real advocates of technology and see the benefits of firms using a centralised CRM system to maintain uniformity and processes.” MOVING FORWARD There is a lot of drive in the market to progress, not least due to the necessity caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The consensus is that this will work best if the market moves forward together, working towards better integration at the same time as innovation. However, Sugar says: “Whoever has a deeper pocket and understands the technology will be ahead in the game. “Moving together at the same pace? I cannot see this happening; however, I do believe there will be www.mortgageintroducer.com

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TECHNOLOGY progression across the board. In the tech sector, you either evolve or dissolve.” Morrey says: “Unfortunately, there will always be some left behind, or which are too big to need to play ball. For brokers, that is just going to mean stagnant productivity and a lack of data to spot trends to act on and improve. “For lenders it may mean reduced numbers of applications. But there will always be smaller lenders and brokerages for whom it is not an issue as they are not looking to grow. “For a network that needs to compete with other networks for advisers, then the IT package may become more and more key to those negotiations.” Looking to the progression of tech across the industry, Thorpe says: “There is new technology coming out every day. We at The Money Group are having monthly meetings on technology to understand where it is going and what we should do.

“Moving together at the same pace? I cannot see this happening; however, I do believe there will be progression across the board. In the tech sector, you either evolve or dissolve” TANJIR SUGAR “From the broker perspective, we look at the current available technology and decide whether it is something worth implementing in our operation.” Savundra believes that there are currently too many CRMs in the mortgage market. He says: “I agree with Sugar’s point of ‘evolve or dissolve’, and I believe that a lot of the CRMs currently available are not sufficient enough to be able to continue operating over the foreseeable future.” Dryden looks to the adaptability of the industry and notes that the market has had to significantly rework itself over the past year due to the challenges created by the pandemic. He says: “People have had to increasingly look to where technology is within the market and the benefits of it as a result of the complications caused by COVID-19. “The lenders, brokers and distributors which have not adapted to the changed world and kept up to date with technology will likely be negatively impacted.” Dryden adds: “I say to my development teams, if you are not learning something new every day then in three years you will be obsolete. “It is essential that you have one ear to the ground so that you know what new technology is coming through and how it will benefit and impact your business.” www.mortgageintroducer.com

Wilkinson agrees with Dryden and goes on to say: “There is only a finite number of advisers out there with seven or eight decent CRMS fighting for their slice of the pie. It is a tough market, and you have to be ahead of the game in order to catch brokers’ attention.” Looking ahead, Dryden believes that future brokers will drive innovation and push for an increased use of technology, which will in turn lead to lenders and distributors incorporating more solutions. He adds: “One thing coronavirus has convinced people of is the importance of managing their cash flow; therefore, we are seeing some mortgage brokers begin to branch out into the wealth sector as well. “It comes back to adaptability – a platform which can incorporate all of these different parts of the financial services sector in one place will significantly improve and move the industry forward in terms of tech innovation.” Sugar says: “Technology must be at the heart of a business, you constantly have to innovate and evolve in order to compete. In the tech space, if your system works you will probably dominate the marketplace.” Popat believes that if a business does not onboard the benefits technology has to offer, it will be left behind, and clients will go elsewhere. However, if advisers are careful to select the right CRM system, which works for their purposes and clients’ needs, there should be no fear of this. He adds: “To keep ahead of industry changes a CRM system needs to keep up to date with the latest industry developments. A CRM system also needs to listen to clients and find ways to provide further benefits to an adviser’s business to ensure the best possible solution is delivered.” Dryden says: “We are in the middle of an evolving time, as there has been a massive change of pace due to the pandemic. It is now about understanding what you are looking for from technology and implementing this. “Technology will do two things for a business: it will either earn you money or save you money, if it does not do either, you should not consider it.” Dryden believes that technology must be looked at with an objective view, which will then help individuals in including what will work best for any business. He concludes: “There are different solutions to the same outcomes, which is why advanced technology is so essential as it will benefit all involved in the chain.”

“Doing anything manually is time consuming and inefficient. What is also crucial is the harmonisation of IT systems and processes, but that is not easy” NICK MORREY BTL I

MAY 2021 MORTGAGE TECHNOLOGY

REVIEW

MEETINGS

I’d like to pose a question Neal Jannels managing director, One Mortgage System

ould you, as a mortgage adviser, rather drive an hour to meet a client face-to-face – 30 minutes there, 30 minutes back – in a COVID-19 safe space, or have this conversation from your desk or home over a video call? Don’t worry, this is not a test, there are no right or wrong answers and nobody is judging your response. However, I think it’s an important question to ask, as it encapsulates the value attached to face-to-face advice in the modern age, how important time is, where this time should be best dedicated, client expectations as lockdown restrictions are lifted, and the role technology will play in the advice process moving forward. We know that the foundations of the intermediary market have been built on face-to-face advice and the relationships generated from this, but the past year has really underlined how adaptable we all need to be. It has also shown how this adaptability is not detracting from the importance or value attached to the mortgage advice process – far from it. In an increasingly complex market, the need for good professional advice has never been more apparent, as is the role technology plays within this. This became evident in research from Vitality which highlighted that 89% of independent financial advisers (IFAs) are using some form of new technology as a result of COVID-19, with many of these changes likely to become permanent. It added that 54% of IFAs had to reassess the technological capabilities

MORTGAGE TECHNOLOGY MAY 2021

of their business since the arrival of COVID-19, and now three quarters (74%) say that video conferencing will remain in some capacity, 28% still expect to host or attend virtual events, and 23% expect to use email in ways they hadn’t before. With technology playing a more prominent role in advisers’ everyday business lives over the past year, the pandemic has also led them to consider how it could help improve their business models. More than half (56%) said that cashflow modelling tools would help to improve their ability to manage customer outcomes, while better integration of back-office tech (40%) and better and faster onboarding (28%) would enable them to generate greater efficiencies – ultimately allowing them to provide an improved service to their clients. With the increasing use of online portals to interact with providers, and more IFAs now advising their clients

remotely, top of the priority list when using this technology were paperless processes, with nearly half (45%) citing this as important, followed by level of service (39%) and security (37%). Integrating a digital approach across all communications, back-office systems and general business practices will prove vital for a variety of firms across financial services. There remains a delicate balancing act for mortgage intermediary firms, and around how individual advisers incorporate this within the advice process. Again, there are no right or wrong answers, as different approaches will require different levels of digital support. But what I think we can all agree on is that the reliance upon an array of systems, solutions and tools will only grow, and that the process can be somewhat overwhelming at times. This is where a mortgage adviser’s natural skill set really comes into play. If advisers take as much due care and attention in sourcing their tech solution of choice as they do in meeting their clients’ needs, then they won’t go far wrong. So, choose wisely, and get to know the people behind the tech before you take that all important plunge.

Different approaches will require different levels of digital support

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