Qualifications
Bachelor of Arts/Law · Diploma of Finance and Mortgage Broking Management · Diploma of Financial Planning and Services · MFPA
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Non-Executive Director, Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia (MFAA)
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Non-Executive Director, Desane Group Holdings (ASX-listed)
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Women in Finance Commercial Broker of the Year: 2022 & 2025
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MPA Top 10 Commercial Broker - the only woman on the list, 2021
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One of the first brokers in Australia to complete MFAA's MFPA accreditation
Melissa Ashcroft is a commercial finance advisor, MFAA Non-Executive Director, and one of the few female brokers in the country working across construction, commercial and high-net-worth lending. She talks finance the way people actually think about it, not the way the industry writes about it.
Melissa's take on finance and complex lending shows up everywhere from industry press to podcasts and panel stages.
Three ways to work with Melissa
WTFinance Talks
A short, practical talk at your office. Just useful finance information your team can actually use.
Panel & Keynote
Speaks with real authority on lending, construction finance, and business ownership. Credible, considered, and comfortable in front of a room.
Podcast Guest
Melissa hosts her own show, P.O.W.E.R, and shows up prepared with a clear angle and real stories rather than generic commentary. She's an easy booking: on topic, well briefed, and comfortable carrying a segment.
FROM THOSE WHO'VE HAD HER IN THE ROOM
"Melissa Ashcroft made an outstanding contribution to the recent MFAA Member Forum in August 2026 on the topic of succession planning. Her unique experience of taking over the brokerage herself, while successfully leading AAA Financial Group into its next generation of growth, provided an incredibly valuable and authentic perspective for our members.
Her insights into introducing the next generation to clients were particularly practical, demonstrating how succession can be positioned as an opportunity to strengthen relationships rather than create uncertainty.
Melissa's combination of lived experience, industry knowledge and practical advice made her an engaging and highly credible speaker. She provided our broker members with valuable insights they could take back and apply to their own businesses as they consider their succession journey."
Bob Masalkovski
State Manager - NSW & ACT, Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia
WTFinance talks
A short, practical session at your office. Melissa picks a topic your team will actually use and keeps it real: examples from actual clients, plain language, no jargon.
Topics include:
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How Borrowing Power Really Works
What lenders actually look at versus what everyone assumes, and how to use debt to build wealth instead of just fund a purchase. -
Renovate or Upsize? Using the Equity You Already Have
A practical look at accessing equity instead of selling. -
Your Business's Finance Health Check
Is your current debt structure working for you or against you. -
Property through your SMSF: What's Actually Possible
Whats changed and whats still possible, post 2026 lending rule changes. -
The Grants and Schemes Available You Didn't Know Existed
Government schemes, guarantor loans, and the deposit myths costing people money, told through real client stories.
Format
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30–60 minutes, flexible
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In person at your office
Panel & Keynote
If you want a guest who'll bring a real opinion, and say something people actually remember, she's a fit for a panel seat, a fireside chat, or a solo keynote.
What she brings
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A confirmed point of view on three areas: construction and development financing (and what it means for affordable housing), the lending landscape across bank, non-bank and private capital, and running a business as a woman in a male-dominated industry
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MFAA Non-Executive Director and NED of ASX-listed Desane Group Holdings
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Regularly sought by trade press for comment on live policy shifts - comfortable being quoted, comfortable being put on the spot
Format
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Panel discussion, moderated or unmoderated
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Solo keynote
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Fireside chat / interview format
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In person or virtual
Podcast guest
Melissa hosts her own show, P.O.W.E.R Podcast, and shows up prepared with a clear angle and real stories rather than generic commentary. She's an easy booking: on topic, well briefed, and comfortable carrying a segment.
What she brings
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Expertise in construction and development financing (and what it means for affordable housing), the lending landscape across bank, non-bank and private capital, and running a business as a woman in a male-dominated industry
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Real client stories and deal examples, not just industry commentary
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Experience as a host herself, so she understands pacing, editing, and what actually makes a segment usable
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Comfortable with a structured interview or a looser conversational format
Format
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Guest interview, structured or conversational
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Audio or video
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Remote or in-studio
Previous appearances include
