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As part of the 2025 Later Life Lending Summit, the European Pensions and Property Asset Release Group (EPPARG) held a panel discussion which took a deep dive into the changing equity release landscape at global level, drawing on the findings of its latest global survey.

The Summit, which was hosted by the UK’s Equity Release Council and held on 13 May 2025 at Church House in Westminster, London, heard from leading figures in the equity release sector. The panel discussion, chaired by EPPARG’s Head of Secretariat Samantha Seewoosurrun, included Ben Grainger, leader of EY’s UK Investment Advisory Team; Sandra Lillienberg, Head of Operations at Enity Bank Group from Sweden; Claudio Pacella, CEO of 65Plus from Italy; and Yvonne Ziomecki-Fisher, Chief Customer, Brand and Advice Officer at HomeEquity Bank from Canada.

EPPARG unveiled a preview of its Global Equity Release Roundtable 2025 survey report which was prepared in collaboration with EY. The survey report, which is in its third edition, gathered data from market leaders in 13 countries spanning Europe, North America and Australia.

Key findings of the 2025 survey report

Providing an overview of the report, Ben noted that there had been some “tweaks” following the launch of annuity products in Spain. He added: “We’ve seen an increase in interest paying products in the UK, and we’ve seen variants around early repayment charges. But the products themselves, the volumes and the interest rates, have largely remained stable over the last year.”

“What we’re looking at across most of the jurisdictions involved is how to unlock the potential in those markets. The survey tells us that there should be more equity release, but we’re not seeing it yet,” Ben surmised.

He suggested that the low equity release growth in the countries surveyed could be largely attributed to two main factors: “Either they have suitable distribution channels and access to their customers but the funding isn’t there, or the funding is there, but they are unable to access the customers.” This could arise from “a lack of knowledge or awareness from customers” or “markets having misconceptions about the product which is moving them away from it”, he reflected.

Interest rates were another significant factor, according to the survey. Ben underlined that products may have been more attractive in 2022 where “interest rates started at 2%”, as opposed to rates “now starting at 6% if you’re lucky”, leading the market to contract.

In terms of the survey findings on where the funding was coming from, Ben highlighted the nuances present in the way banking models and insurance models operate in different countries, and how “the regulators treat the capital requirements on banks” which may limit growth.

Equity release funding and demand in Sweden

Sandra Lillienberg stated that, in Sweden, equity release products are provided by banks and the most common form of funding is traditional bank funding, such as deposits from the public and debt capital market funding. She continued: “We are a bank, with the equity release product being one part of our lending portfolio. This is very beneficial from a funding perspective, as banks have a continuous presence in funding markets.” However, Sandra noted that consumers in Sweden don’t require “independent financial advice before taking out an equity release product”, citing the country’s “very high trust in banks”.

The Swedish FSA expects financial institutions to ensure that the customer understands the product.” Sandra explained that Enity Bank Group takes a comprehensive approach to this, ensuring that “every customer receives the necessary information and support throughout this process”.

Sandra also highlighted that the combination of more pensioners seeking to access capital without selling their home, the ageing population, and the rising property values, are resulting in high demand for products in Sweden. She mentioned home improvements and supporting family members as other significant reasons for equity release’s popularity in Sweden.

Call for warehouse funding in Southern Europe

Claudio Pacella stated that in Southern Europe, “we have the market, we have the clients, we have the operations, we have the regulations, but funding is the missing part of our equation. I’m talking about, of course, not the equity funding to start up the operations, but the funding for the portfolio.” 

He observed that “the hardest part has been the warehouse funding”, an issue which he described as a “chicken and egg” situation: “You don’t have the funding because you don’t have the portfolio. Should we have a portfolio of EUR 300 million, we would have funding much more easily.”

“It’s easier to get EUR 300 million funding once the volumes have been brought up to speed than EUR 30 million funding in the beginning because you don’t have the track record,” he stated. The solution to combat this is “to create a perfect product, a perfect process, be audited many times by many different institutions, and create the perfect environment to make things happen.” Claudio added: “But in the end, in our experience, maybe the part that needs more focus is the warehouse funding.”

Claudio expressed how difficult it is to coordinate one set of standards across multiple countries when “warehousing across the borders”, before outlining the importance of not only product standards, but also process standards. He stated that industry standards such as the EPPARG 10 “have been very helpful” in avoiding “any reputational issues” for equity release products in Italy.

Brand marketing as a game-changer in Canada

Yvonne Ziomecki-Fisher outlined how “underfunded pensions” are steering Canadians towards equity release products, stating that the “fixed amount of pension that comes in every month doesn’t account for lifetime expenses or if you want to help your kids get into the real estate market. You can’t really fund it from your pension,” adding that people’s savings aren’t going as far as they should be into retirement.

She also highlighted that 90% of Canadians surveyed by HomeEquity Bank want to “age in place”, stating that the opportunities are “basically limitless” with “tremendous potential for business in Canada”. 

“Our budget was predominantly focused for many years on just performance marketing and driving originations, but about seven or eight years ago we started investing in brand marketing – having conversations about retirement needs and empowering old Canadians.” Yvonne described brand marketing as a “game-changer” in lifting “all the other activities”.

She explained how HomeEquity Bank has brought on board influencers to enhance its brand marketing and build public trust, including former CBC News anchor Peter Mansbridge and figure skating champion Kurt Browning.

Harnessing the potential of AI in the global industry

Highlighting the omnipresence of technology in the financial services industry as a whole, Samantha Seewoosurrun asked the panellists for their views on how AI is likely to impact upon their practices and operations in the future.

Claudio said that the company in Italy had already been conducting some tests and trials with AI, particularly to speed up the process of reading documents and to determine the origin of the property. However, he hastened to add that AI “should be considered as an assistant, as it’s not yet mature enough to give the perfect answer”.

In terms of its use in Canada, Yvonne mentioned that HomeEquity Bank uses AI in marketing for content creation, in its “contact centre for optimising call flows”, and for faster document ingestion and credit decisions. She underlined: “We’re still testing and learning and we’re also heavily regulated, so we need to make sure that where we implement and go all in, everything meets the standards.”

Finally, Sandra mentioned that Enity Bank Group is currently exploring AI and that she was happy to utilise the tool “in parts of the process”. However, she described personal meetings with customers as “very important”, adding: “I don’t think AI can carry it all.”

After taking questions from the floor and thanking the panel for their expert insights, Samantha Seewoosurrun encouraged audience members to visit EPPARG’s website for more information on its activities.