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Former Commonwealth Bank Manager announced as Smartline CEO

Nick Hall

Mortgage broking finance group, Smartline has announced the appointment of Sam Boer as its new CEO.

Boer joins the Smartline group from Commonwealth Bank Australia, where he served as General Manager, Third Party Mortgage Brokers.

The news comes one year after the group’s acquisition at the hands of REA group, who received an 80.3% stake in Smartline in June 2017, further strengthening its home loan offering, which also includes realestate.com.au Home Loans and realestate,com.au Home Loans broking.

The 2017 deal, worth over $67 million saw Smartline’s over 300 advisors around the country and $25 billion loan book integrated into the REA portfolio, which is majority owned by NewsCorp.

Andrew Russell, REA Group Executive General Manager – Financial Services, said Boer’s history in the retail lending sector would provide Smartline with the best opportunity for growth moving forward.

“Sam brings a wealth of experience to this role and has a long history of leading high performing teams to deliver value for customers,” Russell said.

“His recent experience at CBA and standing in the industry make him perfectly placed to lead Smartline into a new era of broking and finance.”

“The Smartline business is an integral part of the REA Group and I look forward to working closely with Sam to drive our Financial Services strategy.”

For Boer, who boasts over 29 years of experience in personal and professional financial services, the appointment presents a new opportunity to work alongside franchisees.

Currently, Smartline franchisees received a 24-month mentoring program and access to extensive business training and coaching, with the brand looking to expand further.

“I look forward to meeting up with the Franchisees, staff and all other stakeholders that support this quality business and working with them to achieve further success in the years ahead.” Boer said.

“I have known and admired the Smartline team for many years and am delighted to have been selected to lead the business in its next exciting stage with REA Group.”

Chris Acret, Smartline Executive Director and Co-Founder said Boer’s appointment would allow the business to further its financial services franchising operations.

“We’re delighted that Sam will be joining Smartline to lead the business into our next chapter of growth with REA,” Acret said.

“We’ve known Sam a long time, he has strong industry experience and we are very comfortable that he will be a good fit for the business and our people.”