Mortgage Broker

18 | spring 2016 cmba-achc.ca CMB MAGAZINE ceochat brokers and customers have come to expect from us. We're really pleased with the pace of development since introducing the service and I believe our platform has provided the results the Bank was seeking, so a mutual win. cMB: What do you see ahead for the mortgage broker channel? stephen: When we started the business 28 years ago, mortgage brokers had less than five per cent market share. Today, that number is pushing 30 per cent and the channel's share among first-time buyers is 55 per cent according to the 2015 CMHC First-Time Home Buyers Survey. e past is not always prologue, but from what we see, we're very comfortable with the fact that our residential lending business works exclusively in the channel. We think there is room for growth but we also think that to achieve that growth, lenders such as First National and brokers alike are going to need to work even harder to address the demands of borrowers who are becoming increasingly sophisticated. Ultimately the rewards will be there for those who stay true to their core philosophies but innovate and continuously improve. cMB: On a personal note, tell us about your engagement with Queen's University. stephen: I studied engineering and economics at Queen's and feel very fortunate to have had the benefit of a Canadian education. Donating is my way of enabling Queen's to enhance its position as the top business school in the country and one of the best in the world. By contributing to an institution that trains tomorrow's business leaders, I feel I'm playing a part in developing the talent pool for many different industries, ours included. cMB: First National looks ready to surpass $100 billion of mortgages under administration. Five years ago you were at $50 billion. stephen: Correct, at some point soon we will breach the century mark. It doesn't change anything but it does reinforce First National's position as both the largest residential mortgage originator and underwriter in Canada outside the Big Five and the single largest commercial lender in the country. cMB: What's the secret to First National's success? stephen: Essentially, our growth mirrors the growth of the mortgage broker channel and the growth of the securitization market. When we started, pretty well only Schedule I banks funded mortgages. Only through the rise of securitizations and mortgage brokers did that change. First National would simply not be where it is today without mortgage brokers and securitization. It was as much good timing and good luck as it was good teamwork and strategy. meeT STephen SmITh STEPHEN SMITH, one of Canada's leading financial services entrepreneurs, is the Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and Co- founder of First National Financial Corporation. Since its founding in 1988, First National has become Canada's largest non-bank mortgage lender with over 900 employees across the country and over $90 billion of mortgage assets under administration. Mr. Smith is Chairman of Canada Guaranty Mortgage Insurance Company, a member of the board of governors of the Royal Ontario Museum, the board of directors of the C. D. Howe Institute and the Empire Life Insurance Company. He is also Chairman of Historica Canada, which produces the Heritage Minutes and publishes e Canadian Encyclopaedia. In 2012, Mr. Smith received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for contributions to Canada. In 2015, Queen's University announced the naming of the Stephen J.R. Smith School of Business at Queen's University in honour of Mr. Smith and his historic $50-million donation to the school. Mr. Smith holds a B.Sc (Hons.) in Electrical Engineering from Queen's University and an M.Sc. in Economics from the London School of Economics.

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