Mortgage broking pioneer Greg Pennells has launched a new venture that will partner with Choice Aggregation Services, a company he sold for $163 million in 2007.
Mr Pennells, a Business News 40under40 winner, has launched Purple Circle Financial Services, which will sub-aggregate under Choice with members to receive all the services and tools currently provided by Choice but with no ongoing fees.
Qualifying brokers will then earn shares in Purple Circle.
“Over the past decade we have seen hundreds of millions of dollars paid by institutions and the like to the owners of larger aggregation and mortgage broking businesses,” Mr Pennells said.
“My plan is to see some of this money make its way through to finance brokers themselves.”
Mr Pennells co-founded Choice in the 1980s with Ross Begley, and sold the business in 2007 for $163 million.
“When I started out in this business I was one of two guys with zero industry experience but a huge level of determination and focus,” he said.
“In less than ten years Choice had more than 1,300 members and was settling $1 billion dollars a month.
“Those were crazy exciting times and I’m certain Purple Circle will be the next major success story of the industry.”
Choice head of WA, SA and NT Paul McMellon said it was exciting to have one of the company’s co-founders back in the fold.
“I can only imagine what he will achieve with the experience he has under his belt this time round,” Mr McMellon said.
With dealer group Wealth Today also under Mr Pennells’ leadership, brokers can also opt to up skill into financial services under the Wealth Today business.
“We’re able to either train finance brokers to add advice to their own repertoires, or they can partner up with an in-house adviser,” Mr Pennells said.
“The great thing there is that Purple Circle members retain complete client ownership.”
