https://www.cio.co.nz/article/616242/name-nathan-scott-title-cto-company-valocity/

In just three years, Valocity has used technology and innovation to transform the entire mortgage-lending process in New Zealand.

The platform combines the best of big data, advanced analytics and next-generation technology to create a digital ecosystem.

Valocity CTO Nathan Scott says the platform has been designed to deliver customer-centricity and digital innovation, in parallel with regulatory compliance and risk management.

“We have, in effect, streamlined the entire mortgage-lending process and now connect the largest number of valuers, brokers, lenders and consumers in New Zealand together.”

The cloud-based platform provides a dashboard and end-to-end workflow management system, allowing real-time visibility of the valuation and mortgage-lending process across disparate industries, leveraging technology to automate what used to be a manual, time-consuming process.

Earlier this year, Valocity expanded to Australia, opening an office in Sydney.

“As a cloud-based solution, the platform is fully customisable and flexible, which is a first for this type of technology,” he says. “Having already cemented our position as an industry leader in New Zealand, we feel the time is right to now provide choice and disruptive innovation to the Australian market.”

Scott says the company is an example of how a small, New Zealand-owned startup can use cutting-edge marketing, technology and business practices to develop a game-changing product and win against existing dominant global players.

In the past twelve months, Valocity has continued to deliver many firsts and ongoing innovation including:

  • Customisation: Collaborated with lenders to create a bespoke new geospatial platform, including merging multiple, disparate data sets together for the first time.

  • Leveraging API technology: Creating new channels such as partnering with Equifax Veda to distribute Valocity’s valuation reports through the same channel as credit checks for the first time, further streamlining the mortgage process.

  • Launching digital tool-kits for banks: Using the latest technology to make complex data easily available to users via real-time, digital platforms that are device agnostic and engage consumers at key hyper-moments providing relevant insights.

  • Developing a consumer platform: Allowing, for the first time, consumer access to a new system called myvalocity (launched in June ‘16), which enables customers to access valuable insights to make the home buying process easier with ‘buyer packs’ and a ‘Pinterest-like’ dashboard for ease of functionality and insights.

  • Creating the first Mandarin version of property reports online for both consumers and lenders to deliver relevance to market segments.

Scott says Valocity maintains an ongoing balance between operational excellence and innovation.

“For instance, we moved a number of services from cloud-hosted virtualisation machines, to cloud components delivering web services and data services. This movement away from a ‘box in the cloud’ to components, significantly decreases the management overhead, provides greater flexibility and reliance and allows greater cost management.”

Scott says in the next year will see Valocity continue to focus on delivering new innovations to its current customers while growing its customer base to new markets and geographies.

“We’re focused on innovating the future of mortgages and valuations through the collection and utilisation of new sources of data,” he says.

“Data is at the heart of everything we do and we’re also leveraging our technology to allow greater predictive analytics, ensure transparency of data sources and transformation to enable complex data sets to be absorbed and utilised quickly with the use of machine learning technologies.”

Scott says Valocity will also be incorporating new visualisation and geospatial tools into its technology to directly empower its customers with tools for additional digital services for their clients.

“With a focus on rapid, agile development, our mission is to continue to simplify and innovate the entire mortgage ecosystem with technology.”

Valocity was recently granted a three-year Callaghan Innovation growth grant to support its development and Scott says it will continue to use technology to deliver enterprise solutions that are customisable, scalable and secure to re-engineer age-old processes to deliver digital innovation.

This article first appeared in CIO.co.nz