Just over a year ago, Westpac’s RAMS home loan arm was a problem the bank couldn’t shake. After years of compliance failures and stalled sale talks, the once-high-flying brand had become a regulatory headache.

Now, in one of the largest loan portfolio transfers in Australian history, Westpac has finally offloaded its $21.4bn RAMS mortgage book to Pepper Money and its heavyweight backers KKR and PIMCO.

RAMS’ downfall began long before the deal.

Between 2019 and 2023, RAM’s franchise network was caught pushing unsuitable loans through the system. ASIC’s investigation uncovered widespread misconduct, from fake payslips to fudged borrower data. And in 2025 the Federal Court hit RAMS with a $20m penalty.

By that point, Westpac had already stopped lending and shuttered RAMS. It was a full-scale clean-up designed to make the portfolio saleable again — and it didn’t come without collateral damage. Disgruntled franchisees launched a class action claiming the abrupt closure destroyed their businesses.

In October 2025, with the regulatory dust finally settled, Westpac put RAMS back on the market. Pepper Money quickly emerged as frontrunner, leading a KKR-backed consortium that outbid Cerberus Capital Management and Apollo Global Management.

Announced on 3 November 2025, the deal sees the Pepper-KKR-PIMCO consortium acquire the RAMS home loan portfolio for roughly $21.4bn, paying a small premium to book value. Westpac will record a loss on the sale after transaction costs and adjustments — but it was clearly willing to take a hit for a clean exit from a non-core, high-maintenance business.

Given RAMS’ chequered past, risk management was everything. The deal was structured as an asset sale, not a share sale — meaning only the loan portfolio changes hands. Westpac keeps the RAMS corporate entities (and any legacy liabilities), providing no indemnities to the buyers.

The result: Pepper gets the income-generating loan book without inheriting the baggage. The acquisition will double Pepper’s assets under management, up from $20.1bn mid-year.

Completion is slated for the second half of 2026, pending regulatory approvals.

Two heavyweights shared the spotlight.

Ashurst advised Westpac, led by partners Nigel Deed and Narelle Smythe, supported by partners Anita Choi, Stuart Dullard, Emma Malone, Andrew Craig, Jock O’Shea, Kitty Vo, Peter Armitage and Anita Cade, and senior associates Briana Ireland and Jemimah Giblett.

On the buy-side, King & Wood Mallesons acted for Pepper and its consortium partners, co-led by Anne-Marie Neagle and Joseph Muraca. They marshalled a multidisciplinary team across the full spectrum of regulatory and transactional work: Dale Rayner (financial regulation), Jack Hill (M&A), Kirsten Bowe (tech & IP), Lizzie Knight (FIRB), Kirsty Faichen (employment), Caroline Coops (competition) and David Wood (tax).

Deed said the deal “speaks to our longstanding relationship with Westpac and our team's ability to deliver on transactions of this scale and significance.”

Muraca added: “The transaction aligns with Pepper’s growth strategy and reflects the increasingly important role of specialist servicers and private capital in Australia’s mortgage market.”