AFG vs LMG vs Connective — choosing an aggregator in 2026

The aggregator you pick has a bigger effect on your broker economics than almost any other early-career decision. It determines your commission split, your lender panel, the speed at which deals get processed, the tech you use to manage your book, and — quietly — how saleable your book is later.

This piece is an honest comparison of the three largest Australian aggregator groups in 2026: AFG, LMG, and Connective. It's written for a working broker deciding where to land or whether to move, not as a marketing piece for any of them.

The short version

If you want the punchline before the detail:

• AFG — the most established panel and clearest commission structure. Best fit if you value certainty and a known quantity.
• LMG — largest network, broadest support resources, more variability in member experience. Best fit if you want scale and you're confident in your own systems.
• Connective — strongest broker tech (Mercury), more flexibility on splits. Best fit if you want a tech-forward workflow and don't mind self-driving more of the support side.

You won't go badly wrong with any of them. The differences matter at the edges.

AFG (Australian Finance Group)

Headquartered in Perth, AFG runs one of the largest broker networks in Australia and is the only one of the three that's publicly listed (ASX:AFG). That listing matters more than it seems — it means publicly visible financials, public lender arrangements, and a relatively conservative operational stance.

What works

• Commission structure is predictable. Splits are clear, payment timing is reliable, and the trail file format hasn't materially changed in years.
• Lender panel is broad and well-maintained. AFG members consistently have access to the Big 4 and most major non-banks on competitive terms.
• Compliance support is strong. For a broker who doesn't want to be the compliance officer for their own business, AFG's framework is well-supported.

What to watch

• The trail report is dense. The monthly XLSX has 30+ columns, lender splits buried inside, and isn't friendly to anyone trying to reconcile by hand. Most AFG brokers spend longer in Excel than they should.
• Innovation pace is steady, not fast. New aggregator-side tools tend to lag the market by 12–24 months. If you want the latest tech, this isn't where it lives.

Who AFG suits

Brokers who value reliability, want a predictable monthly cycle, and either already have or don't need bleeding-edge broker tech. WA-based brokers are over-represented in the AFG network for historical reasons but it's a national group.

LMG (Loan Market Group)

LMG is the largest aggregator group in Australia by member count. It's the result of the Loan Market and PLAN Australia merger, and it now sits behind several broker-facing brands that share back-office infrastructure.

What works

• Scale. More members means more peer-to-peer learning, better BDM relationships at the major lenders, and more leverage when policy issues come up.
• Broker support model. LMG invests heavily in member support, training, and compliance — typically more than the smaller groups.
• Lender panel and product depth. Comparable to AFG on the major lenders, often slightly deeper on second-tier and specialist non-banks.

What to watch

• Variability of member experience. Because LMG has multiple sub-brands and a federated structure, the experience of two brokers in different brackets can be meaningfully different.
• Trail reporting is multi-tabbed. The monthly export has separate sheets per lender in many configurations — workable, but a pain if you're trying to do book-level analytics in a single view.
• Compliance overhead can feel heavy. The flip side of strong compliance support is more compliance friction. Some brokers love this; others find it slows them down.

Who LMG suits

Brokers who value being part of a large network, want strong central support, and either run a high-volume book or expect to scale. Bigger brokerages and team-based operations tend to land here more often than solo brokers.

Connective

Connective sits behind a smaller but more concentrated member base, with a notable focus on broker technology. Their Mercury platform is the most tech-forward of the three aggregator stacks.

What works

• Mercury. The CRM and workflow tooling is genuinely better than what AFG or LMG ship. Brokers who care about workflow efficiency get real lift here.
• Commission flexibility. Splits and structures are more negotiable than at the bigger two, especially for higher-volume brokers.
• Adoption of new tech is faster. Connective integrates with third-party tools (including this one) earlier in the cycle than the larger groups.

What to watch

• Smaller member base. Less peer network, less critical mass for events and training.
• Self-driving on support. You get more flexibility, but you also need to drive more of your own compliance and operational stuff.
• The trail report format varies. Connective's reports differ across configurations more than the others — usable, but a known reconciliation friction point.

Who Connective suits

Brokers who care about workflow, are comfortable being more self-directed, and want a tech stack that won't feel dated in 2027. Solo brokers and small teams who run a tight operation often gravitate here.

What the comparison misses

A few things that get talked about in aggregator comparisons that matter less than they sound:

• Trail commission rates. They're broadly similar across the three. The variation is usually within 1–2 basis points at the trail level — material over a multi-decade hold, but smaller than the variation between lenders within each group.
• Aggregator-paid bonuses. Marketing-heavy, rarely decisive in actual broker P&L.
• Marketing collateral provided. Marginal value to anyone running their own brand.

What matters more:

• The BDM relationship at the lenders you write the most business with. A great BDM at a marginal lender beats a poor BDM at a major one.
• The speed and shape of the monthly trail file. You'll spend years reading these files. Pick the one whose structure you don't dread.
• The aggregator's policy around book ownership and sale. All three are reasonable; the specifics differ in ways that matter when you sell. Worth checking the contract before signing.

How Trail AI fits regardless

The aggregator file format is an input, not an obstacle. Trail AI ingests AFG, LMG, and Connective files (plus seven other AU aggregator formats) and gives you the same book-level dashboard regardless of who you're aggregated with — see the AFG guide, the LMG guide, or the Connective guide for the format-specific notes.

This matters because brokers who move aggregators usually lose continuity on book analytics. With an external system of record, you keep the analytical baseline and pick the aggregator that suits the rest of your operation.

Switching aggregators

If you're considering a move, the practical steps:

1. Read your existing aggregator agreement carefully — particularly the clauses on book ownership at exit and how unpaid trail is handled.
2. Inventory your active lender accreditations — moving aggregator usually means re-accrediting at every lender.
3. Plan for a 6–8 week settling period where new business slows materially.
4. Snapshot your current book data before the move — once you've moved, accessing the old aggregator's data gets harder, and you'll want the historical baseline.
5. Don't move because of a single bad month. All three aggregators have bad months. Move because of a structural fit problem, not a quarterly grievance.

Key takeaways

• All three are fine. The differences are at the edges, not the core.
• AFG — reliable, established, slightly slower on innovation. Best if you value certainty.
• LMG — largest network, strong support, more variable experience. Best for scale.
• Connective — best broker tech, more flexibility, smaller network. Best for tech-forward solo brokers.
• The BDM relationship at your top lenders and the shape of the monthly trail file matter more than the headline marketing.
• Switching is a 6–8 week project. Don't do it casually.