Catalyzing Change: How UAE-Based Holo, The Middle East's First Digital Mortgage Platform, Is Transforming The Process Of Buying A Home With free access to over 500 mortgage products from all the banks in the UAE today, the Holo platform directly addresses pressing issues that the home buying process is ridden with till date

When Michael Hunter and Arran Summerhill were inspired to create Holo, a UAE-based digital mortgage platform, it came in the aftermath of them having witnessed firsthand the many bottlenecks within the mortgage industry. "I knew something needed to change," Hunter recalls. "After more than a decade in the regional banking and mortgage industry, I experienced firsthand the complexities and inefficiencies of the traditional home-buying process. These ranged from a lack of transparency and prolonged timelines to, well, an overall fragmented ecosystem. Driven to make a difference, we envisioned a platform that leverages technology to streamline the entire process, offering a superior customer experience. This vision became the foundation for Holo, aimed at simplifying and transforming the mortgage journey for UAE homebuyers."

What Hunter and Summerhill thus proceeded to create became a pioneering effort in its own right- Holo launched in 2020 in the Middle East as the first-of-its-kind digital mortgage platform in the region. And with free access to over 500 mortgage products from all the banks in the UAE today, the platform directly addresses pressing issues that the home buying process is ridden with till date—top of the list being some of the more obvious concerns such as lengthy waiting times and tedious paperwork. "The first step in the Holo journey is giving buyers immediate access to live mortgage products tailored to their eligibility, providing a comprehensive cost breakdown within minutes," Hunter—the CEO of Holo—explains. "This eliminates the traditional process of visiting multiple banks, and waiting weeks for information. Next, we offer a fully digital onboarding experience, allowing buyers to upload and verify documents directly on our platform, making the entire application process seamless and paperless. All of our buyers are assigned a case manager through the platform to answer any questions, and provide ongoing support. Once a property is selected, buyers can track and manage their mortgage at their convenience, until the purchase is complete."

Hunter also points out that Holo's services extend beyond the mortgaging journey to helping clients choose their dream homes too. "We recognize that finding a home can be a challenge to home buyers, so we partner with agencies through an internal platform to match buyers with properties," he explains. "This approach has helped Holo clients find their perfect home up to three weeks faster than conventional methods. By acting solely as the buyer's representative, we eliminate conflicts of interest—a structure we believe will become more common in future transactions." Now, consider the implications of Holo's model in a global setting where, as per US-based credit rating agency Fitch Rating's Global Housing and Mortgage Outlook 2024, high mortgage rates will "continue to impact demand and discourage home sales, especially where many homeowners still benefit from low fixed-rates." However, the situation is not necessarily as bleak in the UAE, with multiple reports in 2024 having predicted lower UAE mortgage rates during the remainder of the year which will ultimately result in more property sales.

Michael Hunter is the co-founder and CEO of Holo. Hunter's journey from mortgage broker to leading Holo has been a result of a deep understanding of the market and commitment to improving the mortgage application process. Source: Holo

But the appeal of Holo's services still remains, as the platform's ultimate goal is to help clients find the most affordable mortgage deal, regardless of the market's fluctuations. "Our ethos is that using our platform should not cost more than navigating the process yourself!" Hunter declares. "We have arrangements with our lenders, who compensate us for managing the process, ensuring there's no additional cost to the buyer. In fact, we often secure better products across the market than buyers could find on their own. Our goal is thus to become the leading property platform for homebuyers in the MENAT region. We will continue to advance our operations in the UAE while expanding regionally. We are passionate about the MENAT region, and we believe we can make a significant impact here. This focus allows us to better serve the local market, compared to the highly competitive environments in Europe or the UK."

Related: Double The Perks: Aramex's Partnership With FlapKap Aims To Empower The UAE's SME Sector Both Logistically And Financially

But all this isn't to say that the market Holo currently operates in doesn't present its own share of competitiveness. With the Middle East real estate market expected to record a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.1% from 2023 to 2030, as per a July 2024 whitepaper released by UAE-based investment platform Investopia, the region has seen the birth of a number of proptech companies lately. But according to Summerhill, who's the COO of Holo, the very foundation of his enterprise's offerings edge out any potential competitors on the horizon. "The UAE has other digital home finance platforms, but their business models differ significantly from ours at Holo," Summerhill states. "We pride ourselves on being the largest direct-to-consumer platform in the Middle East, offering a fully digital process from start to finish, while building strong customer loyalty and brand recognition. In contrast, many of our competitors operate on an aggregation model, where they facilitate submissions to banks from other companies, and do not directly manage client relationships. Our focus for expansion is primarily the MENAT region, where there are currently few true competitors at this time. This strategic focus allows us to make a significant impact in our chosen markets."

Summerhill's confidence stems, first and foremost, from the fact that Holo was built using his and Hunter's combined 15-year-long experience in traditional mortgage broker firms in the UK and the UAE. But along the way, the co-founders also ensured that they enrolled themselves in locally tailored programs that would help them further finetune their services. "We have participated in several prominent accelerator programs, including Wamda X in 2020 and the Fintech Saudi accelerator in 2022," Summerhill says. "These experiences have offered us valuable insights into the venture capital and tech landscapes, revealing significant opportunities for regional expansion. Drawing on our expertise from the UK and UAE, we are now preparing to launch the first specialized digital mortgage platform in Saudi Arabia, aiming to establish ourselves as a leading player in the market." Indeed, this proposed move into Saudi Arabia has been another direct result of the optimism Summerhill and Hunter have shown in their venture. "We believe that Holo is ready to extend its seamless services to the Kingdom's home-buying industry with our innovative digital mortgage solutions," Hunter adds. "This expansion aligns perfectly with Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030, which aims to diversify the economy and enhance the financial sector."

Arran Summerhill is the co-founder and CEO of Holo. With over 18 years of experience in home finance, Summerhill's expertise in the financial services industry was pivotal in creating Holo. Source: Holo

Holo's endeavors in the regional mortgage financing industry have been further strengthened with the investments it has received. In February 2023, the startup announced the completion of an undisclosed seven-figure seed round. "We initially planned to transition from our seed funding round in 2023 directly to a Series A round in late 2024," Summerhill reveals. "At the time of our seed raise, we had set a revenue target to achieve before Series A. We surpassed this target in the fourth quarter of 2023, prompting us to reassess the fundraising climate. Over the past 18 months, we observed a shift towards profitability, and a move away from the burn-at-all-costs mentality. Consequently, we decided to double our revenue target for the Series A round. In response, we approached our current investors with an opportunity to participate in a Pre-Series A round, aimed at reaching our newly set target. We successfully secured additional investments from our previous investors, Oryx Fund and Dubai Future District Fund, who increased their contributions, and welcomed a new investor, Aditum. This pre-Series A round was oversubscribed, providing us with additional firepower to fuel and accelerate our expansion into the Saudi market, and explore other opportunities within the MENAT region."

Driving Holo's mission forward is also a commitment to stay atop digital trends that define the mortgage financing industry. For example, two persisting challenges in the sector that multiple studies have highlighted are that of high labor costs and unsatisfactory customer experiences—both of which Holo has addressed through its operational model. "From day one, Holo has been a technology-first company, focusing on building products to minimize the need for extensive staff, while enhancing the customer journey simultaneously," Summerhill notes. "We launched as the first digital mortgage platform in 2020, even before the COVID-19 pandemic, and we have since led the industry with our comprehensive end-to-end tracking solution. Holo allows their customers to monitor their mortgage journey from initial submission through approval to the completion of their purchase, ensuring transparency throughout the process from day one. We also provide white-label solutions of our mortgage journey to hundreds of real estate agencies, property developers, and financial advisory firms, helping them improve their customer experiences and contribute positively to the property ecosystem. Recently, we have been exploring use cases scenarios for artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). Instead of focusing on less impactful technologies like chatbots, we have concentrated on streamlining application processing. The AI-driven tools we built reduce application touchpoints and significantly decrease processing times, benefiting all stakeholders involved."

Charged with this future-forward mindset, Summerhill and Hunter are now looking forward to what promises to be a fruitful journey ahead. "We have significant plans for the remainder of 2024 and beyond, the most important being expanding our footprint across the GCC, particularly in Saudi Arabia," Hunter says. "In addition, Holo is also refining its technology to further simplify the user journey and provide a real-time snapshot of all available mortgage offers. As we approach the close of our upcoming Series A funding round, we are also preparing to announce ambitious expansion plans across the Middle East, positioning ourselves as a leader in the digital mortgage industry. Stakeholders can anticipate more exciting developments, including potential market entries in other GCC countries, further solidifying Holo's presence as a major player in the region's proptech landscape."