FEATURES
EXPERT SPOTLIGHT
Expanding choices for borrowers MPA sits down with Equity-One managing director Dean Koutsoumidis to hear the story behind the group, the changes and challenges it has faced, and how it continues to evolve
MPA: What were you doing before you set up Equity-One? Dean Koutsoumidis: A long, long time ago – in 1989 – the world of financial services appealed to me. Fresh out of high school, I completed a Diploma of Financial Planning via Deakin University as I had ambitions to be a financial planner. Then I started as a paraplanner at Hillross, a subsidiary of AMP. When the early ’90s came along, we were in the midst of a pretty tough recession. Financial planning was not front of mind for people. I did, however, come across this strange world of finance broking. I figured that selling loans (certainly in the early ’90s) resonated with people more than funds management. So I applied for a finance broker’s licence (which interestingly was through the same government department that licensed car salesmen and pawnbrokers – but enough about that). Needless to say, a career in selling mortgages ensued, particularly as in 1990 having someone visit your home to talk about a loan was unheard of. It was almost as exciting as having a pizza delivered for the first time, which was also a ’90s wave of change.
42
www.mpamagazine.com.au
42-45 Expert Spotlight_EquityOne_SUBBED.indd 42
11/02/2020 9:14:35 AM