The mortgage sector is expected to prioritise technology-driven efficiency and service improvements as lenders prepare for another year of volume growth.

Stuart Cheetham, chief executive of MQube, has set out his outlook for the year ahead, arguing that 2026 will be shaped by the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence across the mortgage industry.

Reflecting on market conditions, he said: “2025 has been an interesting year for the mortgage market despite decent growth in mortgage lending with gross mortgage advances soaring by 36.9% to £80.4billion in Q3 2025, the biggest quarterly jump in five years.*”

Cheetham noted that activity early in the year was buoyed by the end of the stamp duty holiday for first-time buyers and improving affordability, although he pointed to continued pressure on real incomes. He added that concerns over the budget later in the summer contributed to a slowdown in demand.

He said: “As we head into 2026, with the budget uncertainty out of the way, most fears allayed, and what we believe to be at least two interest rate cuts to come, we feel that the mortgage market in 2026 should outperform 2025’s numbers.”

Cheetham believes the central challenge for lenders next year will be maintaining service standards in the face of uneven demand. “With a mortgage market that is set to further expand, the key issue for 2026, will be service and lender resilience.

“As everyone knows, mortgage volume doesn’t come in a smooth flow and as a lender, competitive positioning, can fluctuate dramatically leading to huge spikes in demand. Catering for this and maintaining service levels should be a given not a hope.”

He said that 2025 had already seen improvements across the industry as more lenders embraced AI and wider technological tools. “In 2026, the adoption of mortgage technology will be paramount for both lenders and brokers as it will enable them to thrive in a dynamic market.

“It will help lenders streamline their businesses, reduce costs and increase volume and it will help brokers manage workloads, connect with clients and deliver exceptional service.

“For the consumer, it will mean a getting a mortgage faster, easier and making the process more reliable.”

Cheetham stressed the role of AI as an augmenting rather than a replacement technology. He said: “Technology will continue to increase its foothold in the industry in 2026 but whilst AI will play a crucial role in assisting human intelligence it will not replace humans and instead act as a human assisted function aimed at helping humans enhance productivity.”

“We need to plug the AI educational gap, demystifying AI and technology for the mortgage market”

MQUBE’S STRATEGIC PRIORITIES

Cheetham outlined three areas of focus for MQube in the year ahead, beginning with making its AI-driven mortgage technology simpler to adopt for lenders, brokers and borrowers. “The first is making sure lenders, brokers and borrowers get the best out of our next generation AI driven mortgage making it quick, simple, straightforward and easier to adopt.

“We need to plug the AI educational gap, demystifying AI and technology for the mortgage market and building industry expertise around topics of AI and technology so that the industry feels more confident and informed.”

He said the business will continue to develop new AI-driven innovations aimed at improving service and experience across the market. This includes expanding its technology internationally to support new regions.

Cheetham added that developing MQube’s tokenisation architecture will be another major priority. “Last but not least, building out our tokenisation offering, will be a key priority for 2026. Our evolving tokenisation architecture will provide lenders with greater liquidity by allowing them to make their mortgage debt tradable – this will have a fundamental change on our industry in the years to come.”

Looking ahead, he said: “In terms of what’s on my wish list for 2026, it’s most certainly a more stable housing market so that more borrowers get the house of their dreams.

“As well as this, I would like to see everyday usage of AI across our industry as this is what will truly transform our industry for the better.”