Asset based brokerage and fintech firm LoanOptions.ai has made its M&A debut, merging with Sydney-based equipment finance specialist Asset Alley for an undisclosed amount. The move sharpens the AI-powered brokerage’s focus on commercial and asset finance, as dealing-making Down Under continues to heat up.
LoanOptions declined to comment on the details of the transaction. But Founder and Chief Executive Officer Julian Fayad told Australian Broker that, "The deal is in the final stages of finalisation on paper, but the businesses have already integrated. Our focus is on fast tracking the rollout of tech, and Asset Alley has already supercharged their consumer lending numbers immediately.”
LoanOptions said bringing Asset Alley into the group marks a major milestone in its growth trajectory and has immediately expanded its commercial loan book.
Asset Alley is a Sydney-based brokerage specialising in full doc equipment finance. Led by Managing Director Louie Dib — an industry veteran with more than a decade of experience — the firm’s team of eight has built a reputation for navigating sophisticated transactions across construction, transport and other asset‑heavy sectors, LoanOptions said.
Under the merger, Asset Alley brokers gain access to LoanOptions' technology stack, including AILO, which the fintech firm described as the “world’s fastest, easiest and most transparent end-to-end asset finance application process and loan matching engine.” The technology includes a roughly five-minute application process: brokers upload the borrower's ID, payslips and bank information, and AI does the rest.
Meanwhile, deal-making across Australia continues to run hot, and shows no signs of cooling, as firms consolidate, either out of necessity or to grow faster.
In 2025, global M&A deal volumes reached roughly $7.46 trillion AUD, (or $4.81 trillion USD), up from $5.27 trillion AUD, (or $3.4 trillion USD), the year before, according to MergerMarket data. That's an increase of nearly 42%. And the Australian markets, while smaller, still kept pace. That same year, publicly-announced deals to buy or merge with companies that are based in Australia reached $143.8 billion AUD (or $92.8 billion USD), according to Dealogic.
Fayad said the transaction is the natural first step in its M&A plans.
“We’ve spent over five years investing in models and systems that remove as much friction as possible from the lending process,” said Fayad, a former broker who founded LoanOptions in 2020. “We’ve never lost sight of how irreplaceable the human element is, especially in complex, high value commercial deals. Louie and the Asset Alley team are the absolute gold standard in that space and as we looked to expand our brokerage through M&A, this first merger with Asset Alley was a natural choice.
“By merging our proprietary auto-complete contextual engine, bank statement analysis and workflow tracking technologies with their deep domain expertise and team of elite specialists, we are creating a powerhouse brokerage that can handle everything from a simple car loan to multi-million dollar industrial equipment portfolios with unprecedented speed and precision," he added.
Asset Alley will roll out the LoanOptions.ai tech stack across its equipment vendor, accounting and mortgage broking partnerships, while working with the engineering team on advanced commercial lending technologies slated for release later this year.
“Joining forces with Julian and the LoanOptions.ai team is a milestone we’re very proud of and has been a game-changer for our clients and our staff,” Dib said. “By officially joining the LoanOptions.ai group of companies, we’re going beyond integrating its advanced technologies, to actually being part of the engine itself.”
The combined entity will operate from LoanOptions.ai’s Sydney headquarters in Rhodes, New South Wales.
LoanOptions has also recently partnered with Lend, a workflow and CRM platform for brokers.The tie-up allows Lend users access to LoanOptions full product suite on its website.
Kellie Ell contributed to this report.
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