Managing Director Kim Cannon said the acquisitions - from ASX-listed Eclipx Group (ASX: ECX) - were a strategic investment that would support Firstmac’s continued rapid growth.

“During this time of crisis we are taking a positive approach to business to ensure that we emerge out the other side with an even stronger company,” Mr Cannon said.

“These two businesses complement our existing brands very well and will help us expand car loans business over time to match our successful home loan operation.”

Firstmac now owns a stable of “category killer” domains including carloans.com.au, savings.com.au and loans.com.au.

It has already built loans.com.au from a standing start nine years ago into one of Australia’s leading online lenders with more than $6 billion in loans under management.

Firstmac will pay $2.0 million for Carloans.com.au and Georgie, with the transaction expected to complete on or around 9 May 2020.

This acquisition is the latest achievement in a busy month for Firstmac where it also completed a $1 billion RMBS raising to fund its future home lending. This “miracle deal” made Firstmac the first Australian company to successfully tap the funding market since the start of the COVID-19 crisis.

Mr Cannon said that Firstmac had learned from the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) that forward-looking management during a crisis could set the company up for a new era of growth when normality returned.

“Our 41-years of experience has helped us to manage our way through many crises before and COVID-19, while unique, is nothing we can’t conquer because of our strong business,” Mr Cannon said.

“We are using this time to redeploy our staff onto new projects, invest in the future, and rebuild our company to face the challenges of the post COVID-19 economy.”

Mr Cannon said he looked forward to welcoming the Carloans.com.au and Georgie businesses into the Firstmac Group.

 
Media contact: Duncan Macfarlane 0434 184 264 

Firstmac Limited is an independently-owned, Australian financial services provider with almost 40 years’ experience in home and investment loans. Firstmac has written in excess of 100,000 home loans and manages approximately $12 billion in mortgages and $300 million in cash investments. Firstmac is a premier sponsor of the Brisbane Broncos.