Macquarie Bank’s head of broker sales discusses being brokers’ bank of choice, five years and counting
It’s almost routine now. Macquarie Bank, the fifth-largest and fastest-growing major Australian bank, has swept up the awards in MPA’s Brokers on Banks 2026 survey, taking home gold in six of 10 categories, making it the undisputed preferred bank of brokers for the fifth year running.
Brokers voted Macquarie Bank number one for BDM support; brand trust; communications, training and development; online platform and services; product range; and turnaround times. It also took home silver for commission structure, credit policy and interest rates.
But routine or not, Macquarie’s head of broker sales Wendy Brown is no less flattered by the 2026 survey results. “It’s incredibly rewarding to look back on Macquarie’s journey in the broker space and see our significant growth and evolution,” she tells MPA.
“We believe in the power of the broker channel and recognise the invaluable role they play for customers, which is why brokers are central to our home loan distribution strategy.
“We are loudly and proudly pro-broker as we truly believe that brokers deliver choice and exceptional value to the customer, and that customer value is what drives sustainable growth. And with nearly four out of five customers choosing a broker to guide them through the home loan process, we think Australians are voting with their feet.”
All in on brokers
With almost all Macquarie home loans written through brokers, the bank has placed its eggs in the broker basket as much as – if not more than – any other mainstream lender in Australia.
As a testament to this unapologetically broker-centric growth strategy, Macquarie Bank doubled down in 2025 with its national ‘Built for brokers, loved by customers’ billboard campaign.
It’s clearly working. Macquarie now represents nearly 7% of the Australian home lending market, accounting for 21% of total home loan market growth in the past year, eclipsing its larger big four competitors by multiple factors.
“It’s incredibly rewarding to look back on Macquarie’s journey in the broker space and see our significant growth and evolution”
Macquarie Bank’s total household lending rocketed to about $164 billion for the first time in December 2025, marking a 2.4% increase in just a single month.
It currently captures around 14–15% of the entire broker market. That level is notably higher with some aggregators in certain Australian states.
Brown is confident that Macquarie has the building blocks to increase those numbers even further.
“This success reflects the ongoing work and tenacity of our teams, our approach and our willingness to be brave enough to challenge the status quo to deliver better outcomes for brokers and their customers,” she says.
Changing the game through better tech
Substantial investments in digital technology, which have seen Macquarie become a market leader in turnaround times (some applications are processed in as little as 13 minutes) are the bedrock of the bank’s broker-first growth strategy.
“Technology has been instrumental in helping us to streamline so much of the home loan application process, and we’re incredibly proud of how far we’ve come,” says Brown.
“Our commitment to investing in our platform has helped us to not only consistently deliver but also improve our market-leading turnaround times even as we’ve continued to grow, a point we know brokers truly value.”
Round-the-clock support, including outside of traditional business hours, is “a really exciting area” for Macquarie Bank. While self-service capabilities are already in place, smarter digital tools and of course AI will go a long way to achieving this goal.
“We believe in the power of the broker channel and recognise the invaluable role they play for customers, which is why brokers are central to our home loan distribution strategy”
There’s more to come, says Brown. “We’re digital-first, so we’ll continue to make significant investments in our platform and the technology that underpins it, ensuring our industry-leading turnaround times remain consistent.
“Our next big digital investments are focused on continuously enhancing the tools and platforms that support our broker partners. I’m particularly excited about the work our teams are progressing to extend the capability of our very first customer-facing AI agent, Q, to service brokers.”
Q has been “a real game changer for our customers”, says Brown. “We think it has the potential to revolutionise how brokers work too, increasing their efficiency and simplifying their day-to-day tasks so that they can focus on what matters most – their customers.”
Without the national brick-and-mortar presence of its competitors, Macquarie Bank’s digital investments are an act of necessity as much as anything else. But while Macquarie is not visible on the high street, its sprawling network of accredited brokers is vast, covering more than 1,200 postcodes across metro, regional and remote areas.
“Delivering a consistent experience, no matter where our brokers are located, is a key priority for us,” says Brown.
She highlights the pivotal role of business development managers in achieving that goal, noting that the bank has invested significantly in resources and training, having expanded its BDM team by about 20% in recent times.
“We are very intentional about ensuring that all of our broker partners receive dedicated BDM support with specialised regional knowledge, so that they have a consistent point of contact who understands their local market,” Brown says.
More in store for Macquarie
Having led Macquarie’s broker channel for seven years and counting, and with the bank winning MPA’s Brokers on Banks survey five years on the trot, Brown is expecting even bigger things to come.
“For me personally, I’m most looking forward to delving even deeper into how we leverage our technology to continuously refine and improve the experiences for brokers and their customers,” says Brown.
This includes enhancing the Macquarie Bank Broker Portal, which is a one-stop digital hub that’s been designed to speed up turnaround times and reduce follow-ups for brokers.
“We want to continue challenging the boundaries of what’s possible in digital lending, ensuring Macquarie remains at the forefront of innovation,” says Brown. “And, of course, continuing to nurture and grow our invaluable relationships within the broker community.
