Intermediary platform Acre has seen usage double in the past 12 months and is on track to complete £20bn in mortgages this year.
Acre said that Consumer Duty implementation, interest rate rises and a fall in mortgage lending had been factors in more brokers moving to the intermediary platform “to help ease workflow inefficiencies, grow their business and deliver exceptional service to homeowners”.
The company said that it was on track to exceed its target of 5% of new mortgages written using the platform this year.
The firm added that the number of mortgage cases on the intermediary platform with at least one protection product attached has doubled.
The growth in protection penetration is driven by economic uncertainty knocking consumer confidence and firms embracing their Consumer Duty responsibilities, the intermediary platform said.
The company said that recent enhancements such as giving homebuyers more assistance in its client portal, conveyancing updates, improved sourcing and affordability capabilities, along with its unique case history, have been made with the “broker’s workflow in mind, to maximise the result of each case, secure the best product for clients and meet compliance requirements effortlessly”.
Looking ahead, the intermediary platform said that it planned to introduce tools like a Consumer Duty dashboard and bring in AI-based capabilities to automate document categorisation and income verification.
Acre has also made several key integrations in its intermediary platform, including Nationwide Building Society, CoCardless, HoneyLegal, Iress and Lender Connect.
‘Supports the delivery of positive consumer outcomes’
Justus Brown (pictured), CEO and founder of Acre, said: “The last 12 months have been defining for Acre. The team’s hard work in delivering an impactful technology platform that improves brokers’ ways of working and adds value to the service they offer homeowners and their families is receiving broad recognition from brokers, mortgage network and clubs, lenders and the broader fintech ecosystem.
“In the toughest of times when interest rates were rising and products were being pulled, Acre’s brokers were able to use our platform to work smarter in order to secure clients the best mortgage and protection deals for them within a few clicks.”
Nicola Ventrella, operations director at The Right Mortgage, added: “Making the move to a new CRM system is never easy. However, we saw how Acre’s capabilities were rooted in a refreshing, tech-driven approach that would future-proof our business.
“It delivers a valuable time saving and supports the delivery of positive consumer outcomes for our advisory firm members, which is why Acre is now our key software, providing our advisers with one place to manage the entire mortgage journey from start to finish.”
Anna is currently the deputy editor for Mortgage Solutions and editor for Specialist Lending Solutions. She has worked as a journalist since 2019, having secured her Gold Standard NCTJ diploma from News Associates in a fast-track six-month course.
She started her career as a report at specialist publication The Insurance Insider covering a wide range of areas before joining Mortgage Solutions and Specialist Lending Solutions in 2021.
In her role, she helps put together and structure the news agenda for the day and writes up press releases, reports, interviews, analyses and exclusives across both titles. She also commissions blogs for Specialist Lending Solutions and hosts online masterclasses and in-person events across the business.
She has been shortlisted for three journalism awards, which include BIBA Journalist and Media Awards Scoop of Year Award in 2020, Headline Money Mortgage Journalist of the Year Award (B2B) in 2022 and 2023.
Prior to being a journalist, Anna worked in ecommerce across Snow + Rock, Cycle Surgery and Runners Need websites, and before that worked at specialist financial PR firm Rostrum.
In her spare time, Anna enjoys reading, seeing live music, and cooking for friends and family. When she gets a chance, she also enjoys hiking, skiing and indoor rock climbing.
