Leading brokerage pursuing further growth following launch of high-net-worth offering
Azura Financial has joined forces with Stella Private to launch Azura Private, a new arm of the Sydney brokerage built specifically for high-net-worth clients.
The new business is led by Ben Braysich (pictured, centre right), Stella Private's executive director and co-founder and formerly national head of property at Commonwealth Bank of Australia's (CBA) private banking division, alongside Hugo McWilliam (pictured, right), who joined from global wealth manager LGT Wealth Management, and Chris Kang, who previously advised clients across CBA's private and corporate bank divisions.
Azura Financial was founded in 2016 by brothers Tom (pictured, centre left) and Ben Hawley (pictured, left) and has since grown into one of Australia's top 10 brokerages, built primarily on residential, commercial and complex lending.
Azura Private extends that offering into private credit, debt advisory and complex financing for high-net-worth individuals, families and corporate clients.
Speaking to MPA, Tom Hawley, co-founder and director of Azura Financial, said the move was about closing a gap in the business rather than chasing a new market for its own sake.
"Ben was a private banker at CBA for a very long period… and he's actually been running his own independent business for the last couple of years," Hawley said. "We were looking for an operator in his space that could fill a gap for us at Azura, where we already do very well in commercial lending and residential lending to an extremely high standard.
“But in that very nuanced, specialised segment of the market, we wanted someone who could cater to that segment to the same standard."
Braysich's team covers private credit, debt advisory, institutional debt advisory, development funding and high-net-worth private banking lending – areas Azura had not previously served in-house.
"Stella wanted to come in under our operations," Hawley said. "They've come on board to lead that offering and that new arm of the business." In practice, that means brokering for clients seeking large development facilities, private credit relationships and high-net-worth lending that sits outside standard banking channels.
Hawley highlighted the kind of client the combined business can now service end-to-end – someone needing a $45 million development facility alongside a $20 million residential facility, plus everyday lending for their family and employees. "We can now cater to that at an extremely high standard across the full spectrum of lending needs.”
The launch lands as brokers claim a growing share of Australia's complex lending market, with the channel now facilitating a record 81% of new residential home lending nationally. Private credit – lending sourced from non-bank funds rather than traditional banks – has grown alongside that trend, with the sector undergoing its own shift toward greater scrutiny and professionalisation as it matures.
More deals to come?
Hawley suggested Azura Private is unlikely to be the group's last move into adjacent lending specialties.
"We're looking to grow every single year, and we want to partner with like-minded operators who want to be part of a growing business – people who want to set the standard for lending advisory across the board," he said, adding that Azura continues to pursue further acquisitions and collaborations. "There's a lot happening underneath the surface. We've invested heavily in technology, and we've had a lot of growth in the last couple of years."
The growth comes as private credit funds face heightened regulatory attention, with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) estimating the sector now manages around $200 billion in assets.
Azura's bet is that combining institutional private banking experience with an independent broking platform gives high-net-worth clients a single point of access they can no longer find inside the major banks alone.
While Hawley sees value in brokers “staying in their lane”, he believes it “makes sense” to offer a broader range of services under one roof for clients whose needs span multiple lending categories.
