Completion first in a double bill of jumbo mortgage book disposals as HSBC sale to Blackstone confirmed
Westpac has confirmed completion of the sale of its RAMS-branded mortgage portfolio, worth approximately $15.4 billion at completion, to a consortium comprising Pepper Money and global alternative asset management heavyweighrt KKR and PIMCO.
The sale caps off a process that Pepper Money first flagged as preliminary negotiations in late October 2025, with a binding agreement confirmed in early November after Pepper Money, working with KKR, struck terms to acquire the book.
At the time the deal was struck, the portfolio was valued at $21.4 billion – its size has since run down through ordinary loan amortisation ahead of completion.
Westpac managing director, home lending, James Hutton said: "The completion of this transaction further simplifies Westpac and reflects our ongoing focus on becoming a simpler, stronger bank delivering great outcomes for our customers.
“Throughout the transaction, our priority has been supporting RAMS customers and ensuring a smooth transition to Pepper Money. I’d like to thank our customers and employees for their support.”
The transaction followes a difficult run for the RAMS brand.
Between 2019 and 2023, RAMS' franchise network was found to have pushed unsuitable loans through the system, with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) uncovering fake payslips and manipulated borrower data, prompting the Federal Court's $20 million penalty against RAMS Financial Group in October 2025.
Westpac had already stopped writing new RAMS loans in August 2024 as the misconduct came to light, a move recapped in Westpac and ASIC's court appearance to settle the RAMS matter.
The deal will substantially increase Pepper Money’s assets under management (AUM), cementing its place as one of the country's largest non-bank loan managers.
"The transaction supports Pepper Money’s strategy to grow its capital-light servicing business, which provides annuity-style earnings, operational scale and diversification benefits," said the group.
Westpac said the transaction has lifted its common equity Tier 1 (CET1) capital ratio by roughly 23 basis points.
A bigger private credit push into Australian mortgages
The completion lands just days after a far larger transaction rattled the sector: Blackstone's roughly US$25 billion ($36 billion) agreement to acquire HSBC's entire Australian home loan portfolio
Notably, Pepper Money will also act as loan management partner on the HSBC book, putting the non-bank lender at the centre of two of the biggest mortgage portfolio deals in Australian banking history within a single year.
The RAMS and HSBC sales are now being read as the opening move in a broader wave of private credit interest in Australian home loans.
