Connective leads shift as brokers integrate new technology into lending
Mortgage brokers in Australia are adopting open banking at an unprecedented rate, with usage more than doubling over the past year, according to Frollo’s State of Open Banking 2025 report.
The report indicates that open banking has shifted from being a compliance requirement to a practical tool that delivers tangible benefits to both brokers and their clients.
Connective has emerged as one of the leading aggregators in this space, with more than 2,938 brokers now using open banking via its Mercury Nexus CRM platform. This figure accounts for over 13% of brokers nationwide.
Open banking is a regulatory framework that allows consumers to securely share their financial data with accredited third parties, such as mortgage brokers or fintech companies, through standardised digital channels. This enables faster, more accurate access to bank account information, streamlining processes like loan applications and financial assessments. In Australia, open banking operates under the Consumer Data Right (CDR), which gives individuals control over who can access their data and for what purpose, with strict privacy and security protections in place.
The integration of open banking into Mercury Nexus, Connective claims, has enabled brokers to access secure, verified financial data in less than seven minutes, reducing the average time spent per client by approximately 40 minutes.
Open banking is also helping to address industry risks such as fraud by removing the need for brokers to collect payslips, bank statements, or manually assess living expenses. “The CDR gives us a safe, regulated alternative,” said Daniel Oh (pictured top, right), group legal counsel at Connective. “Brokers who present open banking with knowledge and conviction are seeing close to a 100% success rate with clients.”
According to Chin Hui Yeo (pictured top, left), chief technology officer at Connective, the technology is changing the client experience by allowing brokers to focus on client needs rather than paperwork. “In Mercury Nexus, open banking is built into the CRM,” he said.
“Once consent is given, it auto-populates account summaries and transactions into the application, saving brokers significant time and letting them focus on their clients. You can paint a full picture for the customer – it reduces the mental load so brokers can focus on advice and relationships.”
The number of open nanking consents for home loan applications reached 6,200 in July 2025, a sevenfold increase over the previous year. As brokers demonstrate the effectiveness of the model at scale, industry leaders are calling for lenders to keep pace with broker adoption.
“The product is only as good as the input,” Oh said. “Lenders must step up if we’re to unlock the full benefits of open banking for consumers and the industry.
“Open banking is about much more than efficiency. It’s about trust. It helps brokers safeguard their reputations, protect their clients and build confidence in the advice process. That’s what futureproofing looks like.”
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