Ubank, ING, Macquarie: digital-only banks compared on rate and service
Ubank (owned by NAB)
- Variable rate typically 25-40 bps below NAB’s advertised rate
- Fully integrated offset, no monthly fee
- Approval decision often in 48 hours for clean PAYG files at 80% LVR
- Policy weakness: complex income (bonus, dividends, trust distributions) gets haircut heavily, and servicing calcs are conservative
ING
- Historically the sharpest advertised rate among digital players
- Offset account included on variable loans
- Strict LVR policy: above 80% triggers LMI with no waiver except for professionals (medical, legal, engineering)
- Policy weakness: investor loans and non-standard properties (studio, serviced apartment, <50sqm) are frequently declined
Macquarie
- Rates competitive, often 10-20 bps above ING but with better policy flexibility
- Offset, redraw, and split facilities all native
- Strong on professionals and high-income PAYG
- Policy weakness: Macquarie’s credit is conservative on second-job income and overseas rental income
Service reality
Digital-only doesn’t mean no humans. All three have phone support, but the path to a credit-level human on a tricky file is longer than at a broker-backed lender. If your file needs nuance - recent credit event, thin file, non-resident spouse - a digital-only lender is usually the wrong first choice.
Where they shine
- First home buyer, 80% LVR, PAYG, metro property: Ubank and ING are often cheapest in market, and the process is faster than branch banking
- Refinance on a clean file: turnaround is the point; digital lenders can settle in 10-14 business days where the majors take 30-45
- Pure variable with offset: all three have genuine offset, unlike some second-tier products that have a mortgage-linked savings account rather than a true offset
For complex files, digital-only is almost always the wrong tool. For standard refis, it is often the sharpest.