NextGen at the 2026 AFR Banking Summit

NextGen was proud to be Platinum sponsor of The Australian Financial Review Banking Summit on Monday, March 16, as we continue to engage with the leaders, regulators, and innovators defining the future of Australian lending.

The summit brought together senior executives, regulators, and innovators to examine the forces reshaping the sector — and our Chief Customer Officer, Tony Carn, brought NextGen’s industry perspective to the panel.

Brokers, trust, and the role of technology

Tony joined the panel ‘Retail banking: mortgages, brokers and digital financial services’, moderated by The Australian Financial Review reporter Lucas Baird, alongside Melanie Evans (CEO, ING), Anja Pannek (CEO, Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia), and Matt Baxby (CEO, Australia & NZ, Revolut).

The discussion examined some of the most significant tensions in Australian lending today — the evolving relationship between banks and brokers, how lenders are engaging younger borrowers, and the competitive pressure coming from new technology players and non-bank lenders.

On the broker channel, Tony highlighted the collaborative dynamic between lenders and brokers. ApplyOnline^® already processes 97% of applications submitted through the broker channel and spans proprietary channels as well — a position that gives NextGen a unique view of activity and trends across the entire lending market. The panel broadly affirmed the critical structural role brokers play — sitting at the intersection of consumers and lenders, and offering personalised guidance on high-stakes financial decisions. Anja Pannek drew a useful international comparison: in the UK, the broker channel commands around 90% market share, illustrating how strongly that model resonates with consumers who value choice and transparency in complex financial transactions.

The conversation also addressed AI and its relationship to the broker model. Far from displacing brokers, Tony argued that AI serves a complementary function — with Open Banking already delivering measurable efficiencies in data collection equivalent to one full-time employee saved. The opportunity lies in driving greater productivity across the lending process, not replacing the human element of the broker role.

The panel also explored how younger Australians are approaching wealth-building differently — less anchored to the traditional mortgage pathway, and more focused on holistic financial management through digital channels. For lenders and brokers alike, the challenge is remaining relevant to that audience while continuing to innovate.

Fraud: a shared challenge and an Open Banking opportunity

Fraud emerged as one of the defining topics of the day. Tony noted that while fraud has always been present in the lending industry, the sophistication and complexity of fraud attempts has grown considerably. Across the industry, there is increasing alignment on treating fraud as a shared challenge — one that requires collaboration on data sharing and a unified approach to detection and prevention.

Tony made the case for Open Banking as a transformative tool in this space. Rather than relying on submitted documents — which can be manipulated or fabricated — verified Open Banking data provides a regulated, tamper-proof alternative that goes directly to the source. Combined with AI, that data has the potential to identify and prevent fraudulent activity at a scale and accuracy not previously possible. The quality of the underlying data, Tony noted, is critical: AI is only as effective as the source data it draws on, which is precisely why the shift from documents to verified data sources represents such a significant step forward for the industry.

Industry insight

In conjunction with the summit, NextGen published an industry insight piece in the Australian Financial Review this week — Borrowers wait while banks play catch up. It explores how the lending landscape is being redefined by technology, channel dynamics, and changing consumer expectations — themes that were central to this year’s summit agenda and closely aligned with the findings from our recent whitepaper, Australian Lending Technology 2026: 5 insights defining the industry’s future.

One platform. Every channel. End-to-end lending made easy.

Our Platinum sponsorship of the Banking Summit reflects NextGen’s commitment to engaging with the issues that matter most to the industry.

Watch the NextGen 2026 AFR Banking Summit wrap video.