Trussle

Market position

Positioned as the UK's first online mortgage broker and, per its own claim, the number one online mortgage broker on Trustpilot as of September 2019 [5]. TechRound ranked it sixth in a list of top UK PropTech companies [4]. After being acquired by Better in 2021, the company stated an intention to scale up and become the largest mortgage broker in the UK in 2022 [5].

Fee-free brokerage for standard cases with a lender-paid fee model, whole-of-market panel access rather than a comparison-site listing, fully online application with no in-person meetings, ongoing rate monitoring with switch alerts, a price promise, and a service guarantee paying £100 if timelines are missed [0][3][5]. Third-party summaries also note advisers do not receive lender commissions, supporting impartial advice [3].

Technology

A web platform handling the end-to-end mortgage journey: online application and mortgage in principle, secure document upload (proof of income and identity), application progress tracking via a customer dashboard, and automated daily comparison of a customer's mortgage against market deals to trigger switch alerts (RateWatch) [0][3][4]. Product sourcing spans over 12,000 mortgage products from more than 100 lenders as of January 2023 [0]. The company recruited former Wallaby Financial co-founder Todd Zino as CTO in November 2019 [6].

Go-to-market

Direct-to-consumer digital acquisition through its website, calculators, rate comparison tools and educational guides, supported by referral incentives (£100 Amazon vouchers for referrer and referee), a prize draw, a "Better Price Promise" and Trustpilot review volume as social proof [0][5]. TechCrunch noted the online broker model is capital-intensive due to high customer acquisition costs relative to traditional brokers [6].

UK consumers seeking residential mortgages, including first-time buyers, home movers, remortgagers, buy-to-let landlords and homeowners seeking secured loans for renovation, debt consolidation or large expenses, as well as customers with adverse credit or smaller deposits [0][5].

Geography

United Kingdom only; the lender panel comprises UK high-street banks, building societies and specialist lenders, and the service is marketed to UK homeowners and buyers [0][5]. Co-founders met in north London and the company was established in the UK [4].

History

Trussle launched in December 2015 and made its first mortgage submission in April 2016 [5]. It raised a £1.1m round a few months after launch and won PropTech Startup of the Year at the Elevator Pitch LIVE Awards in December 2016 [4][5]. It passed £100m of loans submitted in August 2017 and £1bn in June 2019, and reached 2,000 five-star Trustpilot reviews by September 2019 [5]. A £13.6m Series B backed by Goldman Sachs PSI and Propel Venture Partners was announced in May 2018 [4][6]. Founding CEO Ishaan Malhi resigned with immediate effect in January 2020, also leaving the board, with Chairman Simon Williams leading in the interim supported by co-founder Jonathan Galore [6]. In December 2020 the company became directly authorised by the FCA after five years as an appointed representative of Mortgage Advice Bureau [4][5]. Better announced its acquisition of Trussle in July 2021; the brand became Better.co.uk in December 2022, and in 2025 it was acquired by OneDome [5].

Risks & controversies

TechCrunch reported the abrupt resignation of founding CEO Ishaan Malhi in January 2020 without a named successor, and cited a source projecting a £10m loss in 2019 on £2m of revenue, noting the online broker model's high customer acquisition costs remained an unproven bet [6]. Consumer reviews on Reviews.io show a 2.5 average rating from 17 reviews with only 35% of reviewers recommending the service; complaints centre on poor communication, unresponsive advisers, adviser turnover and, in one case, allegedly unsuitable lender recommendations [2]. A third-party summary also lists limited market coverage (some lenders do not work with brokers) and no consideration of sustainability standards in recommendations as drawbacks [3].