Top 10: Mortgage Lenders

For consumers, mortgage rates are an important topic of discussion with rates expected to increase throughout the year across global markets as a result of macroeconomic conditions. 

In this Top 10, we look at the leading mortgage lenders on the market today, featuring leading financial institutions from across the globe, including Asia, the Middle East, Europe and North America. 

10. Federal National Mortgage Association

The Federal National Mortgage Association, commonly known as Fannie Mae, is a US government-sponsored organisation, that provides mortgage financing across the country. Founded in 1938, Fannie Mae supports renters, homebuyers and homeowners by creating solutions that expand access to affordable housing opportunities. Instead of originating loans and sending them directly to borrowers, Fannie Mae acquires mortgage loans made by lenders and then issues guaranteed mortgage-backed securities (MBS) backed by those loans, attracting investors. It is in this way the organisation has facilitated the financing of approximately 2.6 million home purchases, refinancings and rental units across the US in 2022. 

9. China Zheshang Bank

China Zheshang Bank (CZB) is a joint-stock commercial bank that is regulated by the People’s Bank of China – the country’s central bank. Founded in 2004, the bank is privately held and now has over 100 branches across Mainland China’s major cities. Alongside traditional consumer and corporate banking services, CZB offers a range of digital services such as its Zengjin Wealth Pool, the first individual pooled credit financing product in China. As it has grown, CZB has added mortgage and consumption loan products under its Zhe Mortgage Loan arm. Its mortgage products have been a great success, and its active mortgage and credit card customers are today over 1.5 million in number.

8. Standard Chartered 

Leading UK and international bank Standard Chartered offers a variety of mortgage and loan products. Its mortgage lending services extend to over 59 countries, including 20 markets in Asia and 16 in Africa. The bank's mortgage and loan offerings sit alongside a vast portfolio of banking services, from credit cards, asset management and consumer to corporate and investment banking services. Today, Standard Chartered is modernising its services through partnerships and digital ecosystems, as the bank’s TMT and Fintech Head of Cash Management, Anand Natarajan, told us at Money20/20 USA 2023. 

7. Qatar National Bank 

Founded in 1964, Qatar National Bank (QNB) is the country’s largest when combining total assets, deposits and loans. It was Qatar’s first domestically-owned commercial bank and is today one of the largest across the MEA region. Today, QNB has expanded into more than 30 countries, most recently entering Hong Kong, India, Myanmar and Vietnam – some of the Asian continent's most competitive markets. QNB offers mortgage financing to borrowers in Qatar and across its international network. For Qatari nationals, QNB also provides the Ready Property Finance programme, which offers loan tenures of up to 20 years. 

6. PT Bank Central Asia

PT Bank Central Asia, known also as Bank Central Asia (BCA), is Indonesia’s largest privately-owned bank. Headquartered in Jakarta, BCA first introduced fixed-rate mortgage offers in 2007, which soon became one of its flagship services under its Credit Services division. This division offers a range of loan product offerings, including vehicle loans, working capital loans, syndication loans and pre-export financing for businesses. In recent times, inclusivity has been at BCA’s core, and it now provides Shariah-compliant financing services alongside a host of digital offerings including its electronic wallet and a peer-to-peer money transfer app called Sakuku. 

5. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group

As Japan’s largest bank, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) offers a range of financial services including retail banking services, insurance and, of course, mortgage financing and loans. The bank offers real estate and non-recourse loans in its native Japan, where principal and interest are repaid by the customer using cash flows originating from an underlying asset. Today, MUFG has over 565 domestic branches and more than 110 offices across 50 countries. As the name suggests, MUFG is part of the Mitsubishi group, alongside Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Mitsubishi Corporation.

4. Truist Financial Corporation 

Truist Financial Corporation is the result of a 2019 merger between Branch Banking and Trust Company (BB&T) and SunTrust, which, at the time, were America’s 11th and 12th largest banks respectively. Now operating together under Truist Financial Corporation, the bank is the sixth largest in the US and operates across 15 states, with over 2,000 branches in Washington DC alone. Mortgage loans are one of its core service offerings, alongside personal and corporate banking, credit cards, wealth management and real estate. Truist also offers a securities brokerage service and insurance products. 

3. BNP Paribas

French bank BNP Paribas is one of Europe’s largest. Headquartered in Paris, retail banking is BNP Paribas’ largest division, accounting for 70% of its revenue. But while retail banking may be king for the bank, BNP Paribas still offers a robust home loans offering with an expansive mortgage finance division. It also offers corporate banking, credit cards and wealth management services across its international sphere of operations. BNP Paribas is the parent of BNP Paribas Home Loan SFH, a designated subsidiary that offers mortgage financing across the bank’s global markets. 

2. Royal Bank of Canada 

Royal Bank of Canada, known as RBC, is Canada’s largest bank by market value and operates internationally. As well as retail and corporate banking, RBC offers multiple types of insurance and mortgage loans. In fact, in 2021, RBC’s mortgages accounted for a staggering 27% of all Canada’s then CAD$992bn mortgage and housing market, making it the country’s largest mortgage lender in the country by some distance. Indeed, RBC’s reach extends beyond financial services alone to a range of social initiatives in its native Canada. The bank operates RBC Future Launch, a 10-year initiative launched in 2017 aimed at supporting Canada’s youth for the jobs of today and tomorrow. The programme is fuelled by CAD$500m in funding. 

1. Bank of America

At the summit on our list of Top 10 mortgage lenders sits Bank of America. One of the largest commercial banks in the world, Bank of America offers financial services to over 60 million customers across the globe. Today, almost 60% of its customer base is digital-only, highlighting a successful shift to a technologically-enabled future. As a mortgage servicer, Bank of America directly competes with the retail banking divisions of other larger banks in the US, offering fixed mortgage terms for either 30 or 15 years. It also offers 5.5-year ARM variable rates. In 2020 alone, Bank of America originated 184,090 loans with a total value of US$78bn – making it one of the essential mortgage lenders in the US today. 

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