PEXA has been appointed by Amity Law as its third party managed account (TPMA) provider, following approval from the Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC).
The move marks a key step for the digital property exchange as it prepares to roll out its Sale and Purchase platform later this year.
The CLC approval comes shortly after the Financial Conduct Authority authorised PEXA as a payment institution, enabling it to handle client funds on behalf of conveyancers. The arrangement allows Amity to automate settlement and title registration almost instantly, building on PEXA’s demonstration of the UK’s first fully digital purchase transaction in June.
Amity is the first conveyancing firm to secure such approval, a milestone PEXA said would pave the way for others to follow.
Joe Pepper, UK chief executive at PEXA, said: “This is a hugely significant step in our journey to launching Sale and Purchase – it sets the precedent for the rest of the market to follow, showing the robustness of our systems and controls and giving firms further confidence we operate with the highest standards of security and compliance.
“Having already proven that transactions can be digitalised, this will help us drive further momentum in the UK when it comes to the deployment of the right infrastructure and we’re looking forward to working with the industry in the lead up to the full launch of Sale and Purchase in the coming months.”
Sarah Ryan, head of legal practice and finance & administration at Amity Law, said: “Having PEXA on board as a TPMA is a game changer. It reduces the risk of fraud for us and creates a safer, more transparent and more certain completion process to remove some of the angst borrowers currently feel.
“It’s a positive step in our own digitalisation journey, and we’re excited to see the impact.”
Jason Hinrichsen, director of finance and operations at the CLC, added: “The CLC is committed to fostering a regulatory environment that encourages innovation, delivers quality outcomes, and safeguards consumers from harm.
“TPMAs can deliver added security, transparency and efficiency to the home buying and selling process and we hope to see more practices adopt them.
“If any CLC practice would like to speak to the CLC about using a TPMA we would be happy to engage with them.”
The development signals growing regulatory and industry support for PEXA’s model, with its Sale and Purchase platform expected to launch in the autumn.
