The Australian Broking Awards 2023: The winners

Run with support from principal partner NAB, more than 600 members of the broking industry, dressed in their finest attire, attended the ceremony and cheered their peers while networking with industry leaders and colleagues.

A total of 30 winners (including Broker of the Year) were chosen out of 230 finalists, including brokers and brokerages, aggregators, loan administrators, mentors, thought leaders, and rising stars.

Australian writer, performer, and satirist Mark Humphries assumed emcee duties and provided light and laughter throughout the afternoon.

Brokers, loan administrators recognised

Chris Bates, the owner of mortgage broking business Blusk was named Australia’s Broker of the Year at the Australian Broking Awards 2023, after having won the Residential Broker of the Year award winner earlier in the day.

Mr Bates was recognised for his high volumes, strong customer service, and advocacy for and representation of the broader broking industry.

Simplicity Loans & Advisory managing director Jean-Pierre Gortan won the Commercial Broker of the Year award for his investigative approach to servicing the most complex situations and finding solutions for clients.

The new generation of brokers was championed, too, with Tiger Mortgage principal and mortgage broker Raymond Liao named New Broker of the Year, and Capta Financial founding director and senior mortgage broker Alvie Oliveira taking the Rising Star trophy.

The dedication of regional brokers was highlighted, with Panache Financial director Ashleigh Pakis named Regional Broker of the Year for offering stellar service to clients and building partnerships with the right people.

Yakka Finance managing director Scott Rumble won the Asset Finance Broker of the Year for the second year in a row, while director of The Finance Consultancy, Chris Slack, won the Finance Broker of the Year award.

Providing good customer service is critical to a broker’s success and this has been illustrated ably by Morgan Owen, the founder and director of Penny Finance, who was named the Customer Service of the Year – Individual award winner. She was particularly commended for achieving a high repeat business rate, systemising her checkpoints, and for engaging with a wider community by providing financial literacy education over social media.

The Loan Administrator of the Year award went to Gregory Hall, Action Finance Mortgage Solutions’ operations manager, for going above and beyond for his clients and business.

Mentors, thought leaders applauded for giving back

A broker’s success is underpinned by an effective mentor, something Mortgage Choice state manager Victoria/Tasmania and this year’s Mentor of the Year Margie Cannizzo knows all too well after successfully training and earning glowing testimonials from business and individual mentees.

The Industry Thought Leader of the Year award was given to Property Before Prada managing director and founder Katherine Persoglia for her genuine focus on empowering women and advocating equality.

This year’s Innovator of the Year is Mortgage Advice Bureau Sydney managing director Mark Kevin, who has quickly established himself as a leading broker by marrying the human element of broking and harnessing technology to streamline processes and deliver an outstanding client experience.

Anthony Wick – the partnership manager for Victoria at National Mortgage Brokers – was named Wellness Advocate of the Year for promoting wellness in the broker space (and further afield) and taking initiatives to improve personal development.

Acknowledging broking offices, aggregator groups

Aggregators and broking groups also shared the limelight for their achievements.

Australian Finance Group (AFG), steered by chief executive David Bailey, scored a hat-trick of three trophies, including Major Aggregator of the Year, Broker Marketing Platform of the Year, and Training and Education Program of the Year.

Mortgage Choice also had a successful night after it won the Major Franchise Brokerage of the Year and the Marketing Campaign of the Year awards.

Nectar Mortgages (headed by general manager Stephen Harris) closed out the aggregator awards after being named Boutique Aggregator of the Year.

Home Loan Experts emerged as this year’s Major Independent Brokerage of the Year and the growing group was praised for providing strong financial literacy education to clients, their strong customer service, and rapid expansion.

Sydney-based brokerage The Loan Suite Australia (guided by director Karlie Scharfenberg) was hailed as having the Independent Office of the Year while MoneyQuest Unley (led by director and franchisee Matt Thomas took home the trophy for Franchise Office of the Year.

Action Finance (led by owner Karen Hall) was named Regional Office of the Year with the Mount Pleasant-based business delighting its clients in the Mackay region of Queensland.

Cinch Loans (headed by founder and CEO Suvidh Arora) won the Diversified Brokerage of the Year award for implementing strong diversification strategies across his business, while Melbourne-based financial services firm Zella (helmed by founder and director Victoria Devine) won the New Office of the Year for aligning the founders’ values with delivering authentic service to clients.

Meanwhile, Loan Market One Network Broking – helmed by Nick Gurry – won the Customer Service of the Year – Office award for its efforts in supporting Australian borrowers efficiently and professionally.

Loan Market Greater Springfield (run by broker Mark Winter) secured the Community Engagement Program of the Year award for its work promoting men’s physical and mental health through Movember.

Tech providers in the spotlight

With technology being increasingly important in broking, several awards recognised the progress being made by groups in streamlining the broker process.

LMG (headed by executive chairman Sam White) won the CRM Platform of the Year award for its progressive approach to technology solutions and rolling out a range of new offerings to its newly merged group.

The final group award – Technology Service Provider of the Year – was given to financial management and data sharing app diñeiro for developing solutions quickly to assist the market.

Congratulations to all of this year’s winners!

WHAT DOES WINNING MEAN TO YOU?

Individual categories

BROKER OF THE YEAR and BEST RESIDENTIAL BROKER OF THE YEAR

Chris Bates, Blusk

“Humbling recognition for our nine years of dedication to being a true, trusted adviser to our clients and a model for other brokers to follow”

NEW BROKER OF THE YEAR

Raymond Liao, Tiger Mortgage

For my clients, it means they’re dealing with the best of the best and for prospects, the confidence to choose me.

REGIONAL BROKER OF THE YEAR

Ashleigh Pakis, Panache Financial

Our uniqueness is your power. The real security in life comes from knowing that every day is an opportunity to improve yourself.

INNOVATOR OF THE YEAR

Mark Kevin, Mortgage Advice Bureau Sydney

Winning will validate my crazy decision to pursue this side hustle and turn it into a sustainable business delivering real value to the broking industry.

LOAN ADMINISTRATOR OF THE YEAR

Gregory Hall, Action Finance Mortgage Solutions

We work for clients, not awards. Validation of our efforts, despite age, proves learning and making a difference are possible.

FINANCE BROKER OF THE YEAR

Chris Slack, The Finance Consultancy

Amazing recognition for the laser focus we had for clients’ working capital in such an uncertain and challenging time for their businesses.

ASSET FINANCE BROKER OF THE YEAR

Scott Rumble, Yakka Finance

It would be a powerful affirmation of my expertise and propel me forward to keep setting the standard in the industry I love working in.

RISING STAR

Alvie Oliveira, Capta Financial

Every brick counts towards the fulfilment of our purpose in life. Every brick is the most important. This award is another brick.

WELLNESS ADVOCATE OF THE YEAR

Anthony Wick, National Mortgage Brokers

Winning this prestigious award epitomises the culmination of my unwavering commitment to championing wellness, igniting an exhilarating passion to revolutionise the industry’s wellbeing landscape.

MENTOR OF THE YEAR

Margie Cannizzo, Mortgage Choice

Winning this award affirms that my impact as a mentor will be multiplied, benefiting my franchisees and their local communities for generations to come.

RESIDENTIAL BROKER OF THE YEAR

Chris Bates, Blusk

Humbling recognition for our nine years of dedication to being a true, trusted adviser to our clients and a model for other brokers to follow.

COMMERCIAL BROKER OF THE YEAR

Jean-Pierre Gortan, Simplicity Loans & Advisory

A powerful testament to our hardworking staff, insightful management, and unwavering support from clients and networks, shining a light on our collective resilience and dedication.

INDUSTRY THOUGHT LEADER OF THE YEAR

Katherine Persoglia, Property Before Prada

Winning the Thought Leader Award means recognition for my experience and contribution to the industry and inspires me to continue to develop, innovate, and lead.

CUSTOMER SERVICE OF THE YEAR – INDIVIDUAL

Morgan Owen, Penny Finance

Recognition for my commitment to providing exceptional customer service propels me to continue improving and exceeding expectations. Grateful for the acknowledgement.

Group categories

BROKER MARKETING PLATFORM OF THE YEAR

AFG

This award would recognise the innovative thinking behind our SMART platform and the Red Alert warning system, which save our brokers precious time and resources.

MAJOR AGGREGATOR OF THE YEAR

AFG

Winning an award validates dedication; brings motivation, pride, and distinction among peers; boosts confidence; opens opportunities; and inspires progress and celebration.

REGIONAL OFFICE OF THE YEAR

Action Finance

This award gives us credibility and reflects the high level of service we provide. It showcases we have quality business dedicated to servicing our community.

MAJOR INDEPENDENT BROKERAGE OF THE YEAR

Home Loan Experts

Winning the award and getting the praise from our customers rewards our team for their work and effort.

CRM PLATFORM OF THE YEAR

LMG

LMG is about empowering our brokers to be more productive, work safely, and build bigger businesses. This award is great recognition of that.

MAJOR FRANCHISE BROKERAGE OF THE YEAR

Mortgage Choice

Receiving this award reflects the daily commitment of more than 1,000 brokers in our network to deliver excellence for their customers.

TECHNOLOGY SERVICE PROVIDER OF THE YEAR

diñeiro

We’re a start-up moving into scale-up quickly, offering brokers a unique tool in the marketplace. Winning this award will push our cause further.

NEW OFFICE OF THE YEAR

Zella

Being acknowledged by the industry would be truly gratifying and affirm that we are on the right track in our journey.

CUSTOMER SERVICE OF THE YEAR – OFFICE

Loan Market One Network Broking

Our entire business is based on delivering the very best customer service experience possible. To win this award is a great acknowledgment for our team.

MARKETING CAMPAIGN OF THE YEAR

Mortgage Choice

We’re so proud to have revitalised the Mortgage Choice brand and that it reflects the outstanding service our brokers provide their customers across Australia.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PROGRAM OF THE YEAR

Loan Market Greater Springfield

As brokers, we should always support the communities that support us. We’ve got an amazing opportunity to pay it back.

FRANCHISE OFFICE OF THE YEAR

MoneyQuest Unley

This award is meaningful to me in many ways. It represents perseverance and business growth. It reflects customer satisfaction, loyalty, and client retention.

BOUTIQUE AGGREGATOR OF THE YEAR

Nectar Mortgages

This award is a celebration of ‘quality over quantity’ and has been earned by the efforts of every broker, administrator, and staff member at Nectar.

INDEPENDENT OFFICE OF THE YEAR

The Loans Suite Group Australia

Persistence and good practice breed success. To win means I am the best at what I do and represent.