Melbourne lit up Wednesday night as the Mortgage and Finance Association of Australia (MFAA) wrapped up its 2025 national conference in style with a glamorous black-tie gala at Crown Melbourne that honored Australia's top mortgage and finance industry performers.
Approximately 600 broking professionals from across the nation – including brokers, lenders, BDMs, aggregators and more – turned up in their finest frocks as the broking association awarded its highest honors at the 2025 National Excellence Awards.
“The quality of entries for the Excellence Awards was incredible and the bar keeps getting higher and higher,” said MFAA chief executive officer Anja Pannek.
Australian television actor and singer Tim Campbell emceed the event, as champagne flowed, cameras flashed and the room dazzled with live music, bow ties and plenty of sparkle.
"It's only Wednesday night," Campbell said. "Call off work tomorrow."
Then again, Australia's crème de la crème of the mortgage broking industry aren't exactly known for taking the day off.
Winners for the national event were selected from a pool of 138 finalists, all of whom earned their place by taking top honors at their respective state-based awards. The state-level awards were held in Adelaide, Sydney, Perth, Melbourne and Brisbane throughout May and June. Finalists also competed across five lender-specific categories.
(Members of Lendi Group's Melbourne team pose for a photo pre-gala.)
The nationwide awards spanned a range of categories, celebrating excellence in residential and commercial broking, community contribution, emerging talent, loan administration, broker businesses, customer service, business leadership and more.
Trusted Financial Choice's (TFC) Associate Tripti Goyal, alongside her husband, TFC's Director Varun Goyal, accepted the "Diversity and Inclusion Award" with a rap, while Peter Mastroianni, founder and broker at Brisbane-based Loans Only said he was "thoroughly surprised to have actually won" the "Mentor of the Year Award."
George Srbinovski, head of broker distribution at Ubank, accepted the "Fintech Lender Award" on behalf of his team.
"I've always loved this event. It's one of my favorites," he told Australian Broker. "I love networking with people and getting to meet new friends, and catching up with old friends. It's wonderful."
Pannek congratulated all of the winners and finalists for their achievements.
"The professionalism, expertise, innovation and dedication to meeting your customers’ needs that you display each day is outstanding," she said. "It’s a testament to just how far our industry has come and signals a bright future.”
(MFAA Chief Executive Officer Anja Pannek, centre)
Aggregator Award: LMG
Business Development Manager Award — Aggregator: Jessie Stefanatos, Mortgage Choice
Business Development Manager Award — Lender/Support Service Provider: Roohi Kumar, St. George Bank
Commercial & Equipment Finance Broker Award: Kevin Wheatley, Bayside Residential and Commercial Mortgages
Community Champion Award: Bernard Desmond, Blank Financial
Customer Service Award — Business: Finance Circle Group
Customer Service Award — Individual: Joseph Daoud, It's Simple Finance
Diversified Business Award: HT Capital
Diversity and Inclusion Award: Trusted Financial Choice
Finance Broker Business Award: Azura Financial
Fintech Lender Award: Ubank
Loan Administrator Award: Shelley Tetlaw, Loan Market Propel
Major Lender Award: Macquarie Bank
Mentor of the Year Award: Peter Mastroianni, Loans Only Pty Ltd
Mentor Program Award: Purple Circle Financial Services
Mortgage Manager Award: Rate Money
Mutual/Credit Union Lender Award: Teachers Mutual Bank Limited
Newcomer Award: Michaela Shaw, MoneyQuest Penrith and Blue Mountains
Non-Major Lender Award: Bankwest
Professional Development Award: LMG
Regional Finance Broker Award: Phil Rogers, Loan Market Edge
Residential Finance Broker Award: Balpreet Singh Bal, Loan Market Bal & Associates
Specialty Lender Award: Pepper Money
Support Service Provider Award — Large Company: Allianz
Support Service Provider Award — Small Company: Clear Credit Solutions
Young Professional Award: Kate Sadler, The Broker Society
Perth-based broker Rose De Rossi was honored as a MFAA Life Membership member, a distinction that recognizes her 26-year commitment to the association, including more than 12 years of distinguished service in both state and national leadership roles.
"This speech came from ChatGPT," she told the crowd, while accepting the award.
"It's not just a milestone. It’s a moment to pause, reflect and feel deep gratitude for the journey this industry has taken me on," she said. "After 40 years in finance, I can honestly say that my passion for helping people hasn’t faded. It’s only grown stronger. I’ve seen this industry evolve in so many ways, and every change has only reinforced the importance of what we do."
Pannek said: “Rose has poured a lot of energy into serving our members in WA and around the country, as well as working for the betterment of the industry. Her outstanding contributions and ongoing support are worthy of recognition.”
Additionally, Hank Spier and Wendy Robertson were awarded Honorary Memberships in recognition of their outstanding contributions to the MFAA.
Spier, chair of the MFAA Tribunal, has been instrumental in shaping the association’s self-regulatory framework. Robertson, who recently retired after 21 years of dedicated service, previously served as state manager for South Australia and the Northern Territory. She fought back tears as she said to the crowd while accepting her award, "It's such an honor to be recognized in an industry I love."
