The Mortgage Bankers Association’s annual Insights 2018 Tech-All Stars have been named and this year a pair of Finovate alums – Blend and Roostify – are among those recognized for their achievements in mortgagetech.
“Technology is driving remarkable innovations and efficiencies in real estate finance,” MBA Vice Chairman Brian Stoffers said. “MBA is pleased to recognize the men and women making significant technological contributions to the mortgage industry.”
Also earning recognition from the MBA at its Technology Solutions Conference & Expo earlier this week were Land Gorilla, Docutech, Notarize, and ReverseVision. The six winners were chosen from a nomination pool of 40 mortgage tech companies, the largest number of nominations since the awards were founded in 2002.
“Our Technology All-Stars are designing tools that disrupt the industry, but also make us smarter,” Stoffers added. “They are the ones providing us both faster and safer mortgage business tools to advance our industry. We call the Tech-All Stars the unsung heroes of the industry because much of what they do takes place behind the scenes – but we could not survive or move forward without them.”
The All-Stars honors were a first for both Finovate alums. Earlier this year, Roostify made fintech headlines when it announced picking up a $25 million investment. The Series B round featured participation from new investors Cota Capital, Point72 Ventures, and Santander Innoventures, as well as existing investors JP Morgan Chase, Colchis Capital, and a subsidiary of USAA, and boosted Roostify’s total capital to $33 million. The company said the funds would be used to expand its presence in the enterprise, pursue product enhancements, and seek opportunities in new markets.
Roostify demonstrated its technology at FinovateSpring 2016, showing how its SaaS solution enables lenders to offer a consumer-focused, mobile-friendly experience for borrowers from application to close. The company began the year with news that it was integrating with online loan marketplace and fellow Finovate alum Lending Tree, and has since added Adnan Habib as Vice President of Engineering and Mark McLaughlin as Vice President for Business Development.
Roostify was founded in 2014 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California. Rajesh Bhat is CEO and co-founder.
Newly named to Forbes Fintech 50 list, mortgagetech innovator Blend was founded in 2012 and is based in San Francisco. The company, which demonstrated its Data-Driven Mortgage solution at FinovateSpring 2016, leverages intuitive design and data-powered intelligence to help lenders originate loans more efficiently and improve customer engagement. By making it easier for home buyers to provide lenders with the right, accurate information and streamlining the follow-up process for lenders, Blend’s platform enables application decisioning within days rather than weeks.
Last fall, GoBankingRates featured Blend in its look at 10 Startups to Watch in 2018 roster, and Forbes profiled the company in a feature titled “Blend Wants to Bring the $2 Trillion Mortgage Market to the Modern Era.” Blend has raised more than $160 million in funding, and has an estimated valuation of $500 million. Nima Ghamsari is CEO and co-founder.
