In Partnership with

‘AI isn’t a silver bullet – it’s a tool’

Inside the AI ‘arms race’ of mortgage tech

Simon Bednar

Finsure Group

Industry experts

Joseph White

Real Estate and Mortgage Institute of Canada (REMIC)

Simon Bednar is a senior executive with over 20 years in the financial services industry and is currently the CEO of Finsure Group, one of Australia’s leading and fastest-growing aggregators. Bednar’s extensive experience covers the areas of sales, business consultancy, project management, IT operations, and executive recruitment. Before becoming the CEO of Finsure, he worked as its general manager for seven years. He has demonstrated his ability and passion for leading and inspiring his people, contributing to business growth, and helping brokers succeed in their businesses.

Finsure Group

Simon Bednar

Joseph White, president and CEO of REMIC, has been a staunch supporter of the mortgage industry since 1988. He began his career as a mortgage agent and went on to hold senior positions in the lending sector as national sales manager and VP of sales at two national mortgage lenders. He is a licensed mortgage broker and has been a partner at a successful mortgage brokerage, manager at two national brokerages, principal broker at a commercial brokerage, and founder of a mortgage investment corporation. He currently owns and serves as principal broker at his own boutique brokerage.

Real Estate and Mortgage Institute of Canada (REMIC)

Joseph White

“I strongly believe that AI isn’t a silver bullet – it’s a tool that augments what we do in our network”

Simon Bednar, FinsurE Group

FROM THE influx of AI to the rapid surge in digital advancements to questions around data security, mortgage technology is evolving at breakneck speed – and it’s driving big business. Reports from Allied Market Research found that the digital mortgage software market was valued at US$3.7 billion in 2022 and is estimated to reach US$35.3 billion by 2032 – growing at a CAGR of 24.7 percent from 2024 to 2032. But it’s not all plain sailing. Innovation is almost always accompanied by challenges, from growing pains around adoption to selecting the right product in a competitive market. In a recent roundtable, we sat down with Simon Bednar, CEO of Asia-Pacific mortgage aggregation group Finsure, and Joseph White, Toronto-based president and CEO of the Real Estate and Mortgage Institute of Canada (REMIC), to gain a worldwide perspective on the most important issues facing brokers and advisors across the globe. One of the most pressing areas of concern revolves around the sector’s effectiveness in deploying new technology – looking specifically at how different regions measure performance and iron out problems.

In Canada, White said mortgage tech has also been around for a long time. But despite a real boom in interest, he thinks the broking industry is playing catch-up to other more “AI-ready” sectors. “When I first got into the industry it was all paper based. Then technology slowly started to come in – and now mortgage brokers are using platforms to collect borrower information digitally, reducing paperwork, submitting applications to lenders, and getting approvals back digitally. However, in Canada, we still lag a little bit behind industries like fintech, retail, banking, and some e-commerce. There are some banking apps that allow instant loan approvals – most mortgage applications still require some type of manual intervention with us. But we’re excited by innovation at all stages and have really embraced it.”

“From an Australian perspective, I think the mortgage industry is certainly ahead of our peer groups,” Bednar began. “There’s a strong desire and appetite in the mortgage industry to adopt technology. We’ve been very much centred around the use of technology [and] direct integration to lenders for nearly 20 years. [As a result], brokers are very familiar with how they should use technology and the technology that’s available. But there’s also an appetite – it’s a very competitive market.” And the numbers certainly back up Bednar’s point. In Australia alone, there are approximately 22,000 brokers fighting over a market share that’s just slightly bigger than the Canadian market. Because of that competition, Bednar said there’s a desire to continuously innovate. “We have a lot of third party innovation and technology platforms that are available for brokers to consume. And so, there’s a general level of comfort around how brokers adopt and use tech in our industry.”

Read on

Founded in 2008 by Joseph J. White with the vision of creating practical and accessible education for mortgage professionals in the financial industry, the Real Estate and Mortgage Institute of Canada (REMIC) later expanded its offerings to include life insurance courses in Canada. Over the years, REMIC has empowered more than 50,000 industry professionals and prepared over 12,000 experts for FINTRAC compliance, earning nearly 1,900 five-star Google reviews that highlight its commitment to quality and support. Beyond education, REMIC actively supports community initiatives, including the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and the SickKids Foundation. At REMIC, education means more than certifications – it’s about preparing professionals and positively impacting communities.

Find out more

M&A Insights 2021

Insurance Business America uncovers the answers to brokers’ biggest questions about mergers and acquisitions, with expert insight from MarshBerry, Baldwin Risk Partners and Relation Insurance

Read on

Timothy J. Hall

Relation Insurance

Gerard Vecchio

MarshBerry

Industry experts

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Tellus in penatibus condimentum malesuada ante vulputate nisi, arcu leo. Amet urna sapien purus vestibulum fermentum a. Cursus metus massa donec sed varius. Nunc enim sit morbi lacus, molestie et nunc. Nullam sed facilisi id malesuada. Ante purus velit, quam scelerisque ultrices scelerisque donec. Velit egestas vel ornare pellentesque ridiculus. Mauris tempor augue quis mattis suspendisse feugiat commodo posuere. Faucibus massa adipiscing nullam elit, ac vel accumsan. Phasellus eget ac dignissim fermentum ac placerat elit, metus. Nulla porttitor ante egestas molestie quis quam. Pharetra magna sit mauris tellus gravida rutrum libero sit. Justo orci cras euismod proin massa lorem ut. In non tellus phasellus faucibus ullamcorper nullam odio dui et.

Mashberry

Gerard Vecchio

Relation Insurance

Timothy J. Hall

M&A Insights 2021

Insurance Business America uncovers the answers to brokers’ biggest questions about mergers and acquisitions, with expert insight from MarshBerry, Baldwin Risk Partners and Relation Insurance

Read on

Timothy J. Hall

Relation Insurance

Gerard Vecchio

MarshBerry

Industry experts

Relation Insurance

Timothy J. Hall

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Tellus in penatibus condimentum malesuada ante vulputate nisi, arcu leo. Amet urna sapien purus vestibulum fermentum a. Cursus metus massa donec sed varius. Nunc enim sit morbi lacus, molestie et nunc. Nullam sed facilisi id malesuada. Ante purus velit, quam scelerisque ultrices scelerisque donec. Velit egestas vel ornare pellentesque ridiculus. Mauris tempor augue quis mattis suspendisse feugiat commodo posuere. Faucibus massa adipiscing nullam elit, ac vel accumsan. Phasellus eget ac dignissim fermentum ac placerat elit, metus. Nulla porttitor ante egestas molestie quis quam. Pharetra magna sit mauris tellus gravida rutrum libero sit. Justo or24ci cras euismod proin massa lorem ut. In non tellus phasellus faucibus ullamcorper nullam odio dui et.

Mashberry

Gerard Vecchio

‘When I first got into the industry it was all paper based’

Published Apr 14, 2025

Resources

News

Specialty

Best in Mortgage

Mortgage Industry

Companies

People

Newsletter

About us

Authors

Conditions of Use

Terms & Conditions

Sitemap

RSS

News

MORTGAGE INDUSTRY

BEST IN MORTGAGE

SPECIALTY

Resources

Companies

People

Newsletter

About us

Authors

Conditions of Use

Terms & Conditions

Sitemap

RSS

News

MORTGAGE INDUSTRY

BEST IN MORTGAGE

SPECIALTY

Resources

Companies

People

Newsletter

About us

Authors

Conditions of Use

Terms & Conditions

Sitemap

RSS

Open banking and blockchain insights

After all, there’s a lot to embrace. According to Borrower and Lender Insights, 90 percent of participants believe that mortgage tech is a must for a positive customer experience, with 70 percent adding that embracing new tech helps to cut closing times dramatically. One new aspect of tech that Bednar is most excited about as we move further into 2025 is the advent of open banking. In Australia, the Consumer Data Right (CDR) launched on July 1, 2020, with banking the very first sector to go live. “[It’s] still in its infancy,” Bednar said. “There’s some way to

go. However, the onset of open banking has allowed products, technologies, and businesses like ours to make better, [more] informed decisions for customers, with up-to-date information on customers’ existing accounts. [This] allows lenders to rely on a curated data set, meaning they can provide efficient and more effective approvals to customers in a quicker time frame. We’ve had an online settlement platform, PEXA, in place for a while too. It’s innovated the way that we exchange at settlement.”

Gone are the days when clients book in a time with banks, head on down to the office, and exchange contracts hand to hand. The rise of mortgage tech means that virtually everything is done online, allowing brokers to focus on the more human side of lending – something White is similarly passionate about in the increasingly digitally led world. “I’m really excited about contracts on the blockchain,” he added. “Systems like Velocity, which is a mortgage origination platform by one of the largest brokerages in Canada, has automated marketing capabilities and is integrating AI as well. [But] what’s important to me is how we interact with our clients on a regular basis. It’s one thing about getting the deal done; it’s another thing that we have a human connection and understand what our clients are actually asking us about.”

This onus on a marriage between technology and the human touch is something that’s become important to both brokers and clients of late. Because while AI is a helpful tool, it’s by no means an answer to all the sector’s challenges, as Bednar is quick to point out. “I strongly believe that AI isn’t a silver bullet – it’s a tool that augments what we do in our network. The concept of AI allows us, through open banking sources and curated data, to enhance the onboarding process for customers. We’ve got a data verification process, which means that we’re now able to pass one set of data from the customer through to the broker, back to the lender. So instead of asking for that information two or three times or having to do their own searches, we can pass an Equifax ID through that process, and they can relate back to the actual Equifax customer credit report number – which just speeds things up.”

‘AI isn’t a silver bullet – it’s a tool’

White echoed these sentiments, adding that there’s something of a battle unfolding among major banks competing to leverage AI in the best ways possible. “There’s an arms race to see who can use AI most effectively,” he explained. “There’s also challenge there because AI comes with its own set of inherent biases and issues. However, there’s a lot of ways to incorporate it into the data processing [side].” At REMIC, they’re looking at leveraging AI from a training perspective. That could be by aiding a new, inexperienced hire or even helping a seasoned broker who’s struggling with a unique challenge.

“If you’re a brokerage that’s just focused on lowest rate and nothing else – no other customer service or customer journey – then technology is going to leapfrog over you”

Joseph White, Real Estate and Mortgage Institute of Canada (REMIC)

“We’re finding it very helpful,” White said. “We’ve also designed a ChatGPT version to interpret signals in the conversations. [That means] we’re able to assist the broker and let them know where they may have gone wrong, where they’ve gone offside – and give suggestions [as to how] they could have moved the conversation along or, if they lost the client, how [they could] have kept the client.”

‘Technology augments what a business already has – it doesn’t fix problems’

Looking to the future of the mortgage tech landscape, it’s clear that the only constant here is change. What that change will look like, however, is still up for debate.

“If you’re a brokerage that’s just focused on lowest rate and nothing else – no other customer service or customer journey – then technology is going to leapfrog over you,” White explained. “Online sites that just focus on rates will be able to do exactly what those brokers who’re just focused on rates are already able to do. But if you embrace the automation and stay client focused, [if you’re] using AI to streamline your processes but also keeping it personal, [you can] leverage AI for smarter decisions. Look at what it can give you from a data analysis standpoint and try to integrate those solutions into where you’re going – always be forward-looking. “There are many abandoned buildings throughout North America of old technology companies that are withering away. We don’t want to be one of them,” White said. Bednar agreed, adding that the word of the day here is “planning.” For brokers looking to get ahead of the mortgage tech game in 2025 and beyond, he preaches optimistic caution and practical foresight. “My advice to anyone looking at adopting technology is plan, plan, plan – plan for tomorrow, not today. It’s very easy to get caught in the shiny bright lights of new tech and adopt that in your business as a perceived way of fixing a problem. I’ve seen that many times – and it ends up gathering dust somewhere. [After all], technology augments what a business already has; it doesn’t fix problems.”

Established in 2011, Finsure has evolved into one of Australia’s largest mortgage broking groups. The core of our business ethos is a desire to provide the strongest value proposition to all our broker partners. This underpins who we are as an organization and why we are able to provide the maximum value to those who align with us. We currently have a network of nearly 3,750 brokers, while our loan book is $139 billion. With an international presence, Finsure is a dynamic, scalable, technology-enabled aggregator that is ahead of the pack and driving broker recruitment through our innovative solutions and breadth of service.

Find out more

Younger buyers searching for AI/human partnership

of individuals under 40 would consider switching lenders if AI played a major role in the mortgage process

60%

of first-time homebuyers are looking for an enhanced digital experience

63%

of first-time homebuyers want a fully digital process

However, only

77%

of lenders have adopted AI software

30%

Source: Cloudvirga

Inner circle of executives has major trust in AI

of executives are already using generative AI daily

63%

would trust AI to make business decisions on their behalf

38%

have more confidence in AI advice than in advice from their family and friends

74%

work for a firm where AI-driven insights have replaced traditional decision-making

55%

Source: SAP