loanDepot has invested $80 million in a three-part digital lending platform called mello and is opening a 65,000-square-foot technology campus in Irvine, Calif.
The company raised $150 million
Named after a Greek word that signifies an important future event, mello supports point-of-sale functions, digital loan applications and intuitive online consumer interfaces that are integrated with the company's web-based loan origination system.
Loan officers assisted in the development of the technology, which uses a mix of artificial intelligence and public data to determine consumers' preferences.
Customers respond best to automation that anticipates their needs, said Chief Technology Officer Dominick Marchetti.
"It's got to be simple," he said.
The automation allows the personal loan and mortgage lending company to identify consumer origination trends as well as provide consumers with a more streamlined application process.
loanDepot's technology has helped it determine, for example, that a consumer who works on an application online at 1 a.m. is less likely to follow-through than one who fills it out during the day.
The company automation also will include a mobile loan application process through which borrower information can be verified and consumers can upload documents with a smartphone, all either with or without the assistance of a loan officer.
