BDM in the spotlight: Anthony Wickremasinghe

This Liberty Financial BDM says the best brokers stick to a proven process but also adjust to technology and consumer change.

Liberty Financial BDM in Melbourne, Anthony Wickremasinghe was in hospitality management before his eight years in the industry.

BDM in the spotlight asks a different BDM the same seven questions – giving you a weekly insight into the lives of some of the top BDM’s in the country. ​

How often do you see brokers in a week?
Daily. In a normal week I set 20 appointments seeing around 35-40 brokers (not including PD sessions) with a good balance between new to industry and experienced brokers.

What do brokers want most from you?
When a broker calls me they want me to find a solution and help them from the application stage through to settlement. Luckily, with the diverse product range that Liberty can offer I am usually able to assist. I like to educate my brokers on how to best package a deal and so most of my brokers are confident in submitting deals. Brokers prefer a quick “No” if something cannot be done, however, with me, it’s very rare. :)

What is your favourite part of the job?
Spending time with brokers face to face, getting to know about why they do, what they do. I enjoy networking with aggregator BDMs. Learning from them and also getting referral business from them :) I also enjoy the challenge of getting a broker to use me as their first point of contact.

What distinguishes the best brokers you deal with?
In my mind, a broker that has a quality, proven process in place and sticks to it, are some of the best. They have to be open minded to change, technological innovation and work with the new breed of customer base.

Describe your ideal weekend:
A good gym session where I beat my personal best :). My wife and our 2 boys love going to the wineries in the south eastern suburbs and taking in the scenery spending time together! The strawberry farm is always a hit. 

What’s the strangest lending scenario you’ve ever encountered?
Recently I received an application where the father and son had the same name. Unfortunately for the father (our applicant) the son had a couple of unpaid defaults. The other lenders were not willing to assist. We took the time to understand the scenario and after receiving relevant helpful information, we proceeded and assisted the applicant.

How do you like your steak done?
Medium rare, with pepper sauce and veggies. Chilli flakes or hot English mustard on the side :)

Anthony's contact details:
[email protected]
Mob. 0434338532

Every Wednesday we’ll feature a different BDM from across Australia. If you’d like to be included, please email the editor.

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