The forum will be chaired by Yvonne Ziomecki-Fisher, chief customer, brand and advice officer at HomeEquity Bank, and Robbert Mulder, head of European later life solutions at Senior Capital acting as vice chair.
The forum aims to “bring different countries together to share insights, tackle developing challenges and champion the use of housing equity in later life”.
The ERC currently has around eight member forums, which give organisations the chance to talk about developing issues and work together on projects that will drive the market forward.
Ziomecki-Fisher said: “A significant proportion of the developed and developing world are facing the challenge of how to support a rapidly ageing population who may not have the retirement savings they want or need. Housing equity can play a vital role in meeting this challenge; therefore, I am honoured to be named chair of the ERC international forum.
“Promoting continued high standards of conduct for equity release products is critical to a thriving industry, and to ensuring better outcomes for consumers across the globe. I look forward to supporting this important work and driving progress and collaboration with my colleagues in the ERC.”
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Jim Boyd, CEO of the ERC, added: “Every advanced economy is facing the same challenges with rapidly ageing populations and inadequate retirement savings. The ERC has for over 30 years pioneered standards in our sector, which are recognised as the global ‘gold standard’, while the UK equity release market is considered the most sophisticated in the world.
“We are delighted to provide a new ‘international’ forum as a member benefit, and we look forward to sharing our knowledge and standards best practice with the international community, as well as learn from them. This type of insight will be vital as we push collectively for more people to have the opportunity to use their housing wealth to meet their needs in later life.”
Mulder concluded: “As institutional investors continue to seek greater portfolio diversification, later life assets – such as equity release mortgages and home reversions – are gaining traction as a compelling asset class. I’m honoured to have been appointed vice-chair of the ERC’s international forum and look forward to encouraging broader discussion on how we can better support a diverse customer base by directing greater investment toward this high-growth, strategically significant international sector.”
Earlier this month, the ERC added a sixth lending standard and published a Consumer Charter.
