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Liberty Financial Group has announced its full-year results for the year ending June 2026 (FY26), revealing that it originated a new record of $6.11 billion in new loans over the last financial year. This was 20 per cent higher than the previous corresponding period.
According to the ASX-listed lender, growth was seen in all three lending arms (residential, secured [comprising secured commercial loans and motor finance]) and financial services (comprising unsecured personal and business lending).
Residential lending was at a near-record high in FY26, with total originations of $3.53 billion – just under the record set in FY22 ($3.9 billion).
The largest proportion of new home loans came during the first half, with $1.85 billion written, before moderating to $1.68 billion in 2H26. The lender attributed the second-half slowdown to subdued consumer demand impacted by higher interest rates, cost-of-living pressures, and federal budget changes. Nevertheless, it told The Adviser that application flows for owner-occupiers/investors had not been materially changed since the budget.
Liberty CEO James Boyle commented that while originations in 2H26 were “slightly down over the back half of the financial year”, he noted that they were “significantly higher than the previous corresponding period”.
Speaking of the overall lending results, Boyle told investors on Monday (24 August): “We were thrilled to be able to set a new group record for value of loans written over the year. We consider ongoing focus and discipline of risk-based pricing crucial in a market where challenges are emerging, and that is reflected in our residential originations portfolio, and improved discharges in what continues to be a highly competitive market.”
But it was the growth in the non-residential divisions that enabled the non-bank to achieve its record origination performance.
EV demand fuels secured lending growth
Secured lending (comprising commercial mortgages, secured SME loans, and motor finance) delivered $2.11 billion in originations for FY26.
Unlike the residential sector, secured originations grew in 2H26 (from just over $1 billion to $1.11 billion), driven by ongoing commercial portfolio expansion and accelerating novated lease activity as consumers shift toward electric vehicles (EVs).
This momentum expanded the secured lending book to $6.55 billion at the end of FY26.
Brokers have frequently reported that Liberty Financial’s turnarounds for commercial mortgages are a particular attraction. According to the Broker Pulse: Commercial Lending report by Agile Market Intelligence, Liberty took an average of five business days to reach an initial credit decision on a commercial mortgage between 1 and 25 March 2026 – faster than the major banks.
“We were able to continue our growth in our secured business in each of our auto, commercial SME, and SMSF lending businesses,” Boyle said and flagged that originations were stronger than either of the last periods and reflected “the ongoing appeal of [Liberty’s] SME and SMSF loans, as well as resurgence in our auto lending”.
Business lending and Moula integration drive revenue
Originations in the financial services arm – which includes unsecured personal lending via MoneyPlace and unsecured SME loans via Moula – rose to $464 million.
Performance strengthened in the second half, with originations climbing to $234 million (up from $230 million in 1H26), supported by the recent acquisition of business lender Moula.
Excluding Moula, originations dropped, reflecting what the lender billed as “disciplined execution in a challenging consumer environment.”
“Our financial services business continued to benefit from the ongoing growth, including the recent addition of the Moula business to group, which further diversifies our offering for small-business borrowers,” Boyle said and flagged that originations increased slightly over the period, with $234 million compared to $182 million in the prior corresponding period.
Speaking to Broker Daily about its growing business offering, Boyle said: “We’ve spent a long, long time; many, many years partnering with brokers and educating brokers (particularly those whose core business is home lending) on how to diversify their businesses out to help small-business borrowers.
“One of the great strengths of Liberty is we’ve got a really diverse product range and Moula is an additional product, or an additional arrow in our quiver.
“So what brokers can expect from us is really good education and a breadth of product choices that they can put together to help customers in unique circumstances. And we’ll continue to engage with them to help them understand how to do that really well.”
Although the financial services loan portfolio contracted slightly in 2H26 to $1.02 billion (due to discharges and amortisation exceeding new originations), the arm generated the largest proportion of group net revenue in FY26 at approximately 37.5 per cent, outstripping residential and secured lending due to higher-yielding assets.
The Liberty CEO said: “We were delighted with the momentum we achieved, setting new origination records, and you’ll see from our segment portfolio that, despite competitive tensions continuing, we were able to drive positive portfolio growth particularly in the second half of financial year 26.
“Our residential portfolio remained steady during the period, reflecting the ongoing challenges of disciplined pricing, offset by discharges and amortisation. In contrast, our secured portfolio continued its growth, increasing from $6.1 billion to $6.6 billion at the end of the financial year.
“Our financial services business also continued to grow over the year, although faster in the first and second half, finishing at just over 1 billion.
“That resulted in a group portfolio of $15.2 billion, which was up from $14.6 billion at this time last year.”
[Related: 5% Deposit Scheme welcomes first non-bank lender]
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