The new entity will operate under the Squirrel brand.
A simultaneous partnership has been announced with the financial strategy and coaching business, enable.me.
Squirrel chief executive David Cunningham said “merging with The Home Loan Shop marks a coming together of two like-minded businesses, with a lot of shared values.”
The Home Loan Shop founder, Greg Scott said; “For both organisations, it just felt like the time was right to do something bigger, better and a little different.”
Scott said the priority would be building on the world-class technologies and systems that already exist across both businesses.
Squirrel founder, John Bolton said “some might question the choice to go through with a merger at a time when the housing market is undeniably slow.”
“The reality is, this is the perfect time with borrowers increasingly gravitating towards personal financial advice.”
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Squirrel and The Home Loan Shop will continue to operate as separate entities until mid-2023,
Ultimately, the merger will see Squirrel grow to a team of more than 100, originating upwards of $2.5 billion in mortgages per year, and representing over 6% of the New Zealand mortgage adviser market.
