Air Sourcing and Knowledge Bank launch 'Super Software' for later life advisers

06 May 2020

Answers in Retirement Group (Air Group), the Group of companies covering a range of retirement and later life services, has today (6th May 2020) announced a new partnership with Knowledge Bank creating a ‘super software’ between its Air Sourcing platform for later life advisers and Knowledge Bank’s mortgage criteria search tool.

The creation of the advanced technology is the first time a dedicated criteria platform and a dedicated product sourcing platform have been integrated together in the later life lending space.

Air Sourcing already contains a significant number of criteria options to be utilised by users, however it said that adding Knowledge Bank’s thousands of additional criteria would now give its users unprecedented insight into the availability and compatibility of hundreds of later life products including retirement interest-only mortgages.

From today, Knowledge Bank’s detailed later life criteria information will be overlaid on top of Air Sourcing’s product results to be utilised efficiently by advisers. In addition to the richer data set, advisers will also benefit from single-point data entry which will cut down on time spent re-keying customer information as well as an enhanced compliance audit trail.

Knowledge Bank has significantly increased its offering on later life lending policy and is the largest database of mortgage lending criteria held anywhere in the UK. Kept up to date by the lenders themselves via their own secure portals, the system holds over 4,000 individual pieces of criteria on equity release products alone. This is further split down into granular detail where lenders have multiple brands and funding lines.

On the 11th May, Air Group’s Head of Training, Helen Smith, will be running a training webinar which will walk advisers through the new integration and provide information and support on how to get the most out of it. Registration is available at: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/knowledge-bank-air-sourcing-training-webinar-tickets-104013904388

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The new partnership and updated multi-sourcing and criteria platform follows a number of recent updates to Air Sourcing designed to speed up the sourcing journey including a complete redesign of the sourcing page, a new quick-quote feature and a single KFI request process. The platform also contains all Coronavirus-related updates and changes from providers, delivered via a comprehensive suite of reference tools and filters.

Air Group has also recently launched a Hub for all advisory firms – accessible at www.airsourcing.co.uk/coronavirus - providing one location for advisers to find the very latest information, resources and materials in order to help them stay up-to-date and help them continue operating a successful business through this Coronavirus lockdown period. It also contains a video launch interview between Stuart Wilson and Nicola Firth.

Air Sourcing is home to Air Group’s range of propositions which includes: Air Mortgage Club - the distributor for equity release and later life advisers; Air Later Life Academy – the commercial and training organisation for later life advisers; and Air Rewards - the Group’s Scheme for members to accumulate points for all engagement with Air Group and opt to donate to our annually-chosen charities.

Stuart Wilson, Chief Executive Officer of AIR Group, commented:

“The moulding of this new sourcing and criteria system together creates a new super software for advisers active in the later life lending space and provides a much more powerful tool in order to help them secure the most appropriate product for their clients.

“We’ve recognised the value of Knowledge Bank’s offering for some time and have seen it grow the range of criteria information it holds in the later life lending space over the past 12-18 months. By combining both platforms we can provide users with an unobtrusive addition that will greatly enhance the adviser’s experience and the outcomes they are able to offer clients.

“This is a huge step forward in the later life space and we are looking forward to working with Knowledge Bank and rolling the new platform out to advisers.”

Nicola Firth, Founder & CEO of Knowledge Bank, said:

“This is an extremely exciting and powerful collaboration bringing together the two market-leading systems in their respective fields.

“Advisers in the later life sector have seen a dramatic change to the number of products available in the market over the last few years and therefore the technology to facilitate this has been developed at a rapid rate. But the impressive thing is that it has kept pace with the demands and Air Sourcing is widely recognised as the most comprehensive and feature-rich system in its field.

“This partnership will bolster that position even further ensuring that both experienced and new advisers to later life lending have everything they need at their fingertips to make confident and compliant recommendations to their clients.

“It has been a pleasure for us to work with the team at Air as their knowledge and passion for their sector is evident in every aspect of their system.”

For more information on Air Sourcing, please visit: www.airsourcing.co.uk