The Mortgage Conference 2023

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Building a better future for your customers


Where do you go to meet with like-minded individuals and industry leaders? 

At the Mortgage Conference our main aim was to educate and inform – helping you and your business get ready for 2023 and face the challenges it may bring with confidence. 
 

Delegates heard from industry leaders on the most pressing issues facing mortgage professionals:

  • the new Consumer Duty
  • the rise of green mortgages
  • environmental, social and governance (ESG)
  • how to build a successful business, and
  • how to support vulnerable customers.

View the agenda

Photo gallery

Below is a selection of our photos from The Mortgage Conference 2023. You can download any of these photos directly from our Flickr album. 

The Mortgage Conference 2023

Headline sponsor

L&G-logo

 

 

Legal & General is a provider of insurance, savings and investment products. The group offers individual and group protection plans, pensions plans, annuities, mortgages and general insurance products. It offers insurance products for life, home, building, property, car, and mortgage life. It also offers travel insurance, pet insurance, critical illness cover, lifestyle cover, retirement products, pension products and investment and saving products.  

 

Furthermore, Legal & General offers claims management services, mortgage advisory services and risk management solutions. The group serves individuals, families and business customers. It operates in the UK, the US, Japan, Ireland, Hong Kong, and Bermuda.

Website: https://www.legalandgeneral.com

Sponsors and exhibitors

 
BM-Solutions-v2
Equity-Release-Council

Activity Alliance is the national charity and leading voice for disabled people in sport and physical activity. The charity pushes for inclusion to be at the heart of all plans in sport and activity and disabled people to be prioritised, locally and nationally.

Sport and activity play an important role in our nation’s health so must be a level playing field for everybody. They believe nobody should feel excluded from sport or physical activity. However, disabled people participate less than non-disabled people and are also twice as likely to be inactive. This is called the fairness gap.

Working with various organisations, groups, and supporters like you. Activity Alliance work to make a real difference by gathering insight, sharing expertise, and delivering programmes like the Inclusive PE initiative and events such as the National Junior Athletics Championships. Their goal is to change attitudes towards disabled people in sport and physical activity and embed inclusive practices into organisations.

Activity Alliance have the ambitious goal of closing the fairness gap between disabled people and non-disabled people. With your help, they can work to achieve this within a generation.

Website: https://www.activityalliance.org.uk

With over 20,000 members, Air is the leading, later-life lending platform.

Enabled by technology, knowledge and people, Air offers advisers and lenders: 

  • best-in-class digital sourcing tools 
  • personal performance development services 
  • incentives and rewards programmes 
  • market leading procuration fees and commercial benefits.  

Air consists of:

  • Air Club – the industry’s largest ‘adviser-centric’ later-life mortgage club 
  • Air Sourcing – the leading whole-of-market later-life sourcing tool  
  • Air Academy – an innovative continuing professional development (CPD) training provider, offering the new accredited later-life lending professional standard with LIBF  
  • Air Marketing – helping advisers grow and promote their business 
  • Air Ambassadors – connecting later-life professionals with corporate input and knowledge.

BM Solutions is dedicated to supporting intermediaries, who can access their competitive products and award-winning service through their forward-thinking technology, BM Solutions Online. They aim to support the traditional sector of the buy-to-let market for landlords with small to medium-sized portfolios.

BM Solutions' team of experienced BDMs have consistently been there to complement their consistent and award-winning five-star service. They’re continually refining their products and criteria to suit the needs of intermediaries. 

Website: https://www.bmsolutions.co.uk/



The Equity Release Council represents the equity release sector. It exists to promote high standards of conduct and practice in the provision of, and advice on, equity release with consumer safeguards at its heart.

These standards and safeguards have allowed the sector to grow. They have given financial advisers and their customers confidence in the products and dispelled myths about equity release. And they have educated the public about the potential to access the wealth in their home for a variety of uses.

The reputation and standing of the brand – and the trust developed – has seen its membership grow, bringing the sector together and helping it strengthen its voice. Providers of equity release plans, solicitors, intermediaries, financial advisers, consultants, surveyors and other industry professionals are all committed to the principles of membership.

The Council builds on this unified voice of its members, while remaining independent from the specific views of individual member firms or particular segments of the equity release market.

Website: https://www.equityreleasecouncil.com

Halifax
LiveMore-new
more2life logo
New-Leaf

Halifax Intermediaries want to make life as easy as possible for mortgage professionals and are committed to providing and delivering excellent products and services to advisers and their clients.

Halifax Intermediaries product proposition includes home-movers, remortgages, large loans, new build, help-to-buy and affordable housing.

Mortgage advisers can also secure a great new deal for existing Halifax clients and retain their business with Halifax Product Transfers and Further Advances.

Website: https://www.halifax-intermediaries.co.uk/

LiveMore are the go-to lending partner for all cases aged 50 to 90+.

Bringing a ‘can-do’ approach to lending for this age group, they welcome all kinds of income to give intermediaries and their clients maximum borrowing power, while considering an extensive range of property types.

LiveMore are also known for their premium levels of service, always from a dedicated team of real people. So even when it's not your average case, an intermediary’s client always gets a fair hearing.

Launched in 2020 as an interest only lender, LiveMore now offer a broad range of products from interest only to capital repayment. In a momentous 2022, they launched in Scotland and released 2 new products including a first Capital & Interest range, winning 4 industry awards along the way.

Keep an eye out for LiveMore in 2023, which is set to be another year full of exciting developments.

Website: www.livemoremortgages.com

more2life are specialists in lifetime mortgages, providing flexible plans to the over 55s. They have been helping people make the most of their retirement, and their lifetime mortgages let people transform the money tied up in their property into a tax-free cash lump sum that can give financial freedom. They are passionate about developing unique plans that can be tailored to people’s individual circumstances.

Website: https://www.more2life.co.uk 

For over 20 years, New Leaf’s core principle, has been to train new entrants into the industry and to give advisers a platform to build their own business. 

New Leaf is a champion for new independent financial advisers and mortgage advisers. Their motto is that members “should be with a network that knows their name”. Members should not be just another number but decide to be happy with a network they can trust. 

Website: https://www.newleafdistribution.co.uk

Pure-Retirement
Scottish-Widows
Standard-Life
tenet

Pure Retirement was founded on the belief that everyone deserves to enjoy their later years, with a culture of putting our customers first.

Trading since January 2014, we allow our customers to access the value tied up in their homes and we’ve built a reputation for delivering first-class support to our customers and brokers alike and for delivering products aligned to the customer rather than the financial metrics that sit behind them.

Well known throughout the industry for our outstanding service levels, and we’ve won over 25 industry awards. We’re proud to boast the largest Intermediary Sales division to cater for adviser needs,  including regional BDMs and Telephone BDMs.

Website: https://www.pureretirement.co.uk

Scottish Widows Bank is Lloyds Banking Group's specialist mortgage provider in the offset and professional markets, offering all its products exclusively through the intermediary market.

It’s focused on the offset market for all clients, lending to professional clients and developing a clear understanding of the needs of customers with large loans. 

Over the last 12 months the bank has taken its proposition significantly further with initiatives designed to enhance its products and service. This has included a separate range of products for large loans, later life along with enhancements to its interest-only policy. 

Launched on 18 November 2019, its Premier Mortgage Service is built around the established expertise of its dedicated relationship managers. On hand to help mortgage advisers with large-loan clients, the team offers tailored, expert support.

Website: https://www.scottishwidows.co.uk/extranet/bank

Standard Life Home Finance offers a later life lending solution designed to put you and your clients in control of a brighter financial future.

Their lending approach is clear, competitive, and client-focused, making them the lender you can trust to put you and your clients first. They are providing the support and tools you can count on to recommend lifetime mortgage plans and submit your applications without any fuss.

With competitive rates, a powerful brand name and a wide range of lending features, you'll have the confidence to deliver a better later life outcome for your clients.

Website: https://www.standardlifehomefinance.co.uk

We help mortgage advisers achieve the career you’ve been dreaming of. Whether you want to set up on your own as a self-employed mortgage adviser or take the leap into investment advice, Tenet Financial Services can help you reach your career ambitions. Talk to us to find out how we can get you started on your journey to being your own boss or becoming an investment adviser.

Website: https://www.tenet.co.uk/self-employed

Worksmart

WorkSmart exists to serve the Financial Services community by providing leading edge regtech to help firms manage regulatory people and process obligations.

Founded in 1997 by one of the first regtech entrepreneurs, the vision was to build technology that was easy to use, streamlined processes and delivered transparency and oversight.

Through the provision of both ‘software as a service’ (SaaS) and bespoke implementations – hosted or on premise – WorkSmart caters to firms both large and of the more boutique variety.

All of WorkSmart’s solutions are built with one thing in mind – that is to help customers and their organisations drive business benefits from effectively embedding regulatory change.

Website: https://www.worksmart.co.uk

Conference speakers

Ester

Headline speaker - Esther Dijkstra
Managing Director of Intermediaries
Lloyds Banking Group

Previously she was the Director of Strategic Partnerships for LBG with responsibility for the National Account, Housing Development and Intermediary Experience teams as well as leading Mortgage Intermediary digital strategy.

Prior to that she was the head of Intermediary protection at Scottish Widows where she was instrumental in the launch of ‘Scottish Widows Protect’ into the Intermediary market, which went live in 2015.

Esther began her career in management consultancy with IBM in the Netherlands and moved to the UK in 2000. She previously worked for Legal & General where she was Commercial and Marketing Director of the L&G Network and UK Mortgage Club.

Esther lives with her husband and two children in Guildford. 

View Esther's LinkedIn profile

 

Kim Balasubramaniam
Jonathan-Barrett
Danny
Nick

Kim Balasubramaniam
Senior Mortgage Broker
The Mortgage Mum

Jonathan Barrett
CEO & Co-founder at Comentis

Danny Belton 
Head of Lender Relationships
Legal & General Mortgage Club 

Nick Birdseye
Strategic Partner Development Director
Legal & General

Kim is an award-winning Senior Mortgage Broker at The Mortgage Mum. She believes a home is so much more than bricks and mortar and is passionate about providing an exacting and empowering service to her clients. With over 15 years’ experience as a small business owner she is also committed to using her voice to empower the self-employed to take control of their finances and run their businesses in an efficient and sustainable way. As a former stylist, Kim has a particular love of interiors and interest in period property and is currently renovating her own Grade II listed cottage in the countryside. She is regularly featured in consumer and industry press and is a popular podcast guest.


View Kim's LinkedIn profile

Jonathan has over 22 years’ experience in bringing new digital solutions to the financial services market and has worked at both large multinational corporates as well as small high growth fintech businesses.

 

He has authored papers on the value of financial advice as well as a white paper on the use of technology and digital channels amongst the post retirement generation. He has also been a speaker and panel attendee at a number of conferences on the use of technology and Artificial Intelligence to help engage consumers in improving their financial wellbeing.


View Jonathan's LinkedIn profile

With over 24 years’ service in Mortgage Club and 34 years at L&G, Danny is something of an industry legend. He currently heads up the Lender Relationship team.

Legal & General Mortgage Club is the largest and longest-running mortgage club in the UK. It’s involved in nearly one in five mortgages in the UK and almost one in three intermediate mortgages. It falls under Legal & General’s retail division, which covers the savings, protection, mortgage and retirement needs of 12 million retail policyholders and workplace members.

As Head of Lender Relationships, Danny leads his team to manage relationships with lenders and ensure propositions and products for the Club’s member firms suit their needs.

Danny is committed to driving change for the mortgage market and ensuring lenders and advisers have the right information and tools for business growth. He regularly uses his platform to raise awareness about issues, including the New Build area, green agenda and business standards.

View Danny's LinkedIn profile

Having joined Legal & General in 2012 Nick works with existing and new Strategic Partners to development Retirement Lending distribution and advice opportunities and to help those businesses broaden their customer propositions.

He has a deep understanding of delivering advice to both Retirement Mortgage and Wealth Management customers having led National Advice Distribution networks at both L&G and Aviva.

In addition to significant IFA sector and Direct to Consumer experience, Nick has worked closely with Bank and Building Society partners and understands the challenges of meeting customer needs in these sectors. Prior to his time with L&G, Nick had 18 years with Aviva.

View Nick's LinkedIn profile

 

adam-blaze

Adam Blaze
Chief Executive
Activity Alliance

Vanessa-Carver

Vanessa Carver
Equity Release Specialist
Financial Management

Nadim
Nadim Choudhury
Head of Careers and Employability and Lecturer
The London Institute of Banking & Finance
Lee

Lee Coates OBE
Co-Founder of ESG Accord

Adam joined Activity Alliance as Chief Executive in January 2023. He has over 20 years' experience in the sport industry, much of which has been spent on creating open, accessible, and inclusive opportunities for disabled people in sport and activity. His passion lies in creating meaningful and sustained change so that everyone can access opportunities to be active. Adam has a strong focus on developing people and is a qualified coach and mentor. Away from work, you will find him either playing and coaching football, or supporting one of his six children with their sporting activities.


View Adam's LinkedIn profile

Vanessa has worked as an IFA for a small DA firm for 25 years, specialising in pension and retirement advice; the last 5 of which have been focussing solely on advising on later life lending.


View Vanessa's LinkedIn profile

Nadim is a fully accredited and qualified career coach and academic with over 18 years' experience in the UK higher education sector.

He has trained in person-centred, psychodynamic and solutions-focused coaching techniques and holds a MSc in Career Management and Coaching from Birkbeck College, University of London.

Nadim helps individuals develop their career, find meaning in their professional identity and achieve career success. He has coached over 1,000 undergraduates, postgraduates, professionals and executives at some of the world’s leading business schools including:

  • The London Business School
  • Hult Business School
  • Grenoble Graduate School of Business, and
  • Global University Systems.

His sector expertise includes financial services, consulting, marketing and international business.


View Nadim's LinkedIn profile

Lee is currently part of the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA’s) Disclosures and Labels Advisory Group (DLAG). He also undertakes consulting work for fund management companies and discretionary fund managers on ‘environmental, social and governance’ (ESG) and issues related to sustainable finance.

In 1987, Lee started his career as a Life and Pensions Inspector for Friends Provident. He then founded the financial advice firm, Ethical Investors, in 1989, which dealt exclusively in ethical and responsible investment advice. He has also founded:

Ethical Screening – an independent ethical research company, with colleagues from Ethical Investors, in 1998

Cruelty Free Super – Australia’s first animal-friendly superannuation fund, in 2010, and

ESG Accord – which helps advice firms implement robust compliance procedures to meet sustainability preference requirements, in 2020.

In 2011 Lee was awarded an OBE for services to ethical business and finance.

View Lee's LinkedIn profile

david-conway

David Conway
Managing Director
Clayhall Financial Services

Nic

Nic Dent
Head of Client Engagement
Worksmart Ltd.

Julie

Sanjay Gadhia
National Sales Manager
Standard Life Home Finance

Julie

David Geale
Director of Retail Banking
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)

David has been a mortgage broker for 15 years. He has built Clayhall Financial Services from a sole trader firm into one of the biggest writer firms within the Primis Mortgage Network. He’s delivered over a billion pounds of lending to his clients in the residential and buy to let space. Every client needs tailored advice from first time buyers to professional landlords, so being able to secure the best terms with market leading service time and again is how he ensures every client is a client for life.   


View David's LinkedIn profile

Nic is highly experienced in implementing people centric compliance and performance management solutions focused on regulatory alignment, optimal business benefit and long term value.

Aside from his responsibilities within the marketing, sales and product strategy functions, Nic spends the good share of his time consulting on how to better manage regulatory based processes whilst improving capability, productivity and customer experience.

View Nic's LinkedIn profile

Sanjay has over 15 years’ experience in the financial services industry, working within a B2B environment with financial advisers, dominated by sales roles at all levels. The last 3.5+ years’ have been spent in the later life lending industry working for equity release lenders, currently as National Sales Manager for Standard Life Home Finance. 
 
Sanjay has enjoyed success in his all his roles, achieving Business Development Manager of the Year at the 2020 Equity Release Awards. He continues to support financial advisers, firms, networks, service providers and clubs.

 

View Sanjay's LinkedIn profile

David is the Director of Retail Banking at the Financial Conduct Authority, responsible for the supervision of retail banks and building societies, banking and mortgage policy and key projects such as Access to Cash.

Prior to this role, David was the Director of Policy, with responsibility for policy development across a wide range of areas both retail and wholesale, and oversight of the FCA’s Innovation Hub. He has worked in regulation at the FCA (and its predecessor the FSA) for more than 20 years, spanning several different roles in both policy and supervision.

David is a previous chair of the G20/OECD Task Force on Financial Consumer Protection and is currently a Non-Executive Director of the Payment Systems Regulator. Prior to joining the regulator, he worked in the financial services industry.

View David's LinkedIn profile

Emma Howell

Emma Howell
Business Development Manager
Worksmart

Rachael-Hunnisett

Rachael Hunnisett
Green Mortgage Campaign Lead
The Green Finance Institute

Hazel-Johnston
Hazel Johnston
Market Development Manager
Legal & General
Sally

Riz Malik
Director

R3 Mortgages

Emma is Business Development Manager at Worksmart and has been involved in some 30 SMCR and Training and Competence systems implementations. After spending a number of years as a Mortgage and Investment Adviser in her early career, for the past 20 years she has put her experience to use in understanding the challenges faced by Financial Services firms and providing solutions that deliver real business benefit.


View Emma's LinkedIn profile

Having started out her career as a mortgage advisor before working for a mortgage lender within business development, national accounts and new build, Rachael has a decade of experience working in the mortgage intermediary sector.

Her recent move to the Green Finance Institute sees her combining her passion for sustainability with her career. Rachael is responsible for the GFI’s Green Mortgage Campaign as part of their Built Environment Programme and is working to create a green mortgage market which is scalable and plays a significant role in improving the energy efficiency of UK housing stock.  

View Rachel's LinkedIn profile

With a background in mortgage and equity release advice as well as regional sales, Hazel has now stepped into the insurance arena with a passion for helping advisers provide robust resilience planning to their customers. Having been a student with the London Institute of Banking and Finance (LIBF) for CeMap, CeRer and DipFa, Hazel has first-hand experience on how to develop into a successful adviser following completion of your qualifications.  

Read Hazel's LinkedIn profile

Riz is a seasoned financial professional and an appointed representative of New Leaf Distribution. Riz has over 20 years of industry experience and has become a trusted adviser to clients seeking expert mortgage advice. He has a track record of successfully assisting clients in obtaining financing for their dream homes and investment properties. He is committed to providing his clients with the information and resources they need to make sound financial decisions.

Riz holds an economics degree as well as an MBA from Warwick Business School, and he is a LIBF-certified mortgage adviser. In his spare time, he serves as a Trustee for a six-school Academy Trust. Riz's interest in economics has led to interviews with the media about the mortgage market, including appearances on Sky News.

View Riz's LinkedIn profile

Sally

Sally Mitchell
Business Manager and Senior Broker
The Mortgage Mum

Philip-Quinn

Philip Quinn
Head of Intermediary Sales

LiveMore Capital

Chole Temperley

Chloe Timperley
Senior Policy Adviser
Association of Mortgage Intermediaries (AMI)

Kay Westgarth
Kay Westgarth
Sales Director
Standard Life Home Finance

Sally was a busy mother of two looking for a career change when she came across The Mortgage Mum movement. She qualified as a mortgage broker in August 2020 and is now a senior broker and business manager with the firm.

Coming from a background in recruitment and property development, Sally uses her management skills and business experience to drive The Mortgage Mum brand further. She has featured on radio, TV and podcasts commenting on all aspects of the mortgage market.

Sally has always had a keen interest in property and has renovated and refurbished her own homes whilst living in the UK, Spain and the US.

Read Sally's LinkedIn profile

With 15 years of experience across specialist and high street lenders, Phil Quinn's biggest passion is adding value to brokers. His ethos is to always help them identify new opportunities in the market and keep finding new ways to offer excellent service.

View Philip's LinkedIn profile

Chloe is a Senior Policy Adviser at the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries (AMI) and has over seven years’ experience in the financial advisory world, having worked in a range of business areas including compliance, marketing and paraplanning.

She is also the author of a book about the UK housing crisis called ‘Generation Rent’, published in 2020. Chloe’s current areas of focus at AMI include green mortgages and retrofit and the later life lending market – alongside broader regulatory matters such as the FCA’s new Consumer Duty. 

View Chloe's LinkedIn profile

Kay was integral to the launch of Standard Life Home Finance into the intermediary market in October 2021. Kay started her later life lending journey with Key Group but has worked in financial services for over 30 years.


The majority of that time was at Lloyds Banking Group – setting up and managing the sales team for their Intermediary Broker Operation. She has also managed the Annuities Team at Prudential and the National Sales Team for part of Towergate Group before joining Key Group in 2018.

View Kay's LinkedIn profile

Stuart-Wilson
Stuart Wilson
Chairman
Air Club

Stuart is an award-winning and experienced later life lending speaker. An entrepreneur at heart with a deep understanding of what drives advisers, Stuart has leveraged technology, knowledge, and people to meet the needs of the growing later life lending sector. Since forming in 2007, Air has grown to add a range of complementary brands to aid advisers in gaining skills and knowledge to help their clients. 

An award-winning and popular speaker, Stuart regularly speaks at industry events including the Later Life Lending Event and the National Later Life Adviser Conference and pens regular, thought-provoking articles across many trade publications.

View Stuart's LinkedIn profile

 

Stuart-W
Stuart Wilson
B2B Marketing Director
Key Group

Stuart joined as the B2B Marketing Director for Key Group in July 2014. He heads a team responsible for the marketing of a range of Key Group B2B brands including: 

  •  more2life, one of the later life lending market’s biggest lenders, and  

  • Air, the platform for later life lending professionals.  

Stuart has over 30 years of experience in the financial services sector, having worked well-known brands including Friends Provident, Abbey Life, Just Retirement and LV=.  

He also ran his own marketing agency that specialised in helping advisers who work in the mortgage market. And he was part of a start-up team that launched fixed term annuities into the UK retirement market. 


View Stuart's LinkedIn profile

Jeff
Jeff Woods
Head of Intermediary Development
Legal & General Retail

Jeff is Head of Intermediary Development at L&GI, responsible for growing the protection market across both personal and business protection.

Jeff’s been in the industry for 32 years and has experience as a mortgage broker, financial planner, sales manager, regional sales director, and business development director. He’s held several senior positions in life providers, networks, service providers, advisory firms, and corporate estate agency.

Jeff’s financial services background has a strong protection focus. He’s passionate about supporting the end consumer and advisers alike, to raise the profile of, and highlight the need for, protection particularly in protecting income.


View Jeff's LinkedIn profile

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