Sagent unveils new servicing platform

Warburg Pincus-backed fintech Sagent launched on Wednesday its new servicing software platform called Dara, which has a single real-time database and user experience across the entire core, consumer and default servicing life cycle, according to the company. 

It’s the first launch for Sagent under the leadership of recently appointed CEO Geno Paluso, a retired U.S. Navy captain who served as the vice president of business development for multinational firm BAE Systems before joining Sagent on Feb. 12. 

“We took some time to listen to the industry about what they wanted in a mortgage servicing platform,” Perry Hilzendeger, executive vice president of servicing at Sagent, said in an interview. “Our mortgage servicing industry has a very fragmented process.” 

To tackle this issue, Dara provides an “end-to-end process in a unified user experience,” with the same look for the team members who operate it and the customers who utilize it. Dara begins with the loan onboarding process and continues through the life cycle until a refinance, payoff or a negative credit event such as a default or foreclosure, Hilzendeger explained. 

“Additionally, what was missing in current structures was a data platform that supported the entire servicing life cycle,” Hilzendeger said. “As an example, you might be in the customer service module collecting information, someone else is in the loss-mitigation module working in an account, and that data does not flow in today’s systems. … The system has to batch overnight; in some cases, it takes more than an overnight for you to get the data you need.”  

Dara is the latest move in Sagent’s multiyear strategic plan, which also includes moving its platforms to the cloud and building long-term relationships with top U.S. mortgage servicers. Sagent is launching Dara at this week’s Mortgage Bankers Association Servicing Solutions Conference & Expo in Orlando. 

“What we did was we effectively prepared the ground of a completely new cloud-based platform using modern technology, using AI workflow automation,” Sagent chief technology officer Uday Devalla said in an interview.  

The executives anticipate a reduction of up to 40% in total operational costs with the platform, mostly in call-center expenses and loss-mitigation processes. The company also said the platform brings an “embedded compliance rules engine that proactively prevents errors and enables anytime auditability against investor requirements.” 

The executives said Sagent will provide servicers with the ability to customize the platform. They added that Dara is competitive with clients’ in-house solutions, which tend to be expensive for servicers to maintain.

Mr. Cooper is the first client in the platform, with the expectation of full implementation early in 2025. The companies signed a multiyear agreement in February 2022. Mr. Cooper sold certain intellectual property rights for its cloud-based technology platform to Sagent and received a minority equity stake in the fintech company.

Per the terms, Sagent was tasked with integrating Mr. Cooper’s consumer-first platform into a cloud-native core, then licensing the resulting cloud-based platform to banks and independent mortgage companies.

Regarding the next steps with the platform, Devalla said the company is “definitely looking at” adding some technology for mortgage servicing rights (MSR) trading.