Growing revenues and healthy margins mean broking businesses are prospering, but they are increasingly worried about technology and preparing for the future, a new Macquarie Bank report says.

Regulatory intervention, increased price sensitivity among clients and heightened competition are other major issues identified in an online survey of 194 brokers.

“All of these trends have been foreshadowed in earlier benchmarking studies,” Macquarie Business Banking National Head of Insurance Eoghan Trehy says.

“However, it seems they are becoming increasingly urgent, and that Australia’s leading insurance brokers are now actively embracing change.”

He says “high-performing brokers” are still feeling their way with technology but are “ahead of the curve in harnessing innovation to increase productivity”.

Strategies include partnering with tech companies and launching pilot projects to automate and streamline operations.

Macquarie’s research confirms most broking businesses are prospering amid recent premium hardening, with average revenues and average profit margins up.

Market researcher Fiftyfive5 surveyed the brokers last year for the Macquarie Insurance Industry Pulse Check, titled Thriving Through Change.

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