Compliance is a different language
InvestorMate is a Sydney-based buyers agency on a mission to help everyday Australians build lasting wealth through strategic property investment. Founded by Emmanuel Michael, the business runs a hands-on, six-step process — from initial consultation through to ongoing portfolio reviews — guiding clients across first-home purchases, investment properties, SMSFs, and family trust structures.
The team is experts in property. Compliance legislation, however, is a different language entirely.
The Challenge: Tranche 2 AML/CTF Lands on the Doorstep
In 2024, the Australian Government confirmed that real estate professionals, including buyers agents, would be captured under the long-anticipated Tranche 2 reforms to the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing (AML/CTF) Act. With the new obligations taking effect from 1 July 2025, businesses like InvestorMate suddenly faced a compliance landscape they had never needed to navigate before.
The obligations are significant: businesses must conduct customer due diligence, understand their risk exposure, maintain an AML/CTF program and policy, and report certain transactions and suspicious activity to AUSTRAC. For a lean buyers agency focused on finding the right property at the right price for their clients, the idea of working through 88 pages of compliance legislation was, understandably, daunting.
"I spend my time finding properties for buyers, not reading 88 pages of compliance legislation. Visibl was a no-brainer."
— Emmanuel Michael, Founder — InvestorMate
Eshanee Collins, InvestorMate's Settlement Manager, brought relevant experience from a banking background — but even she acknowledged that the specific obligations for buyers agents weren't immediately clear.
"Coming from banking I understand working in a regulated industry, but I wasn't exactly clear on the level of reporting obligations for us as a buyer's agent under Tranche 2 compliance."
— Eshanee Collins, Settlement Manager — InvestorMate
Finding Visibl: Clarity Where There Was Confusion
InvestorMate came to Visibl looking for a practical path through the complexity. Their first touchpoint was a demo with Visibl's compliance specialists — and the experience set the tone for everything that followed.
Rather than presenting generic compliance frameworks, the Visibl team translated the legislation directly into the context of a buyers agency — the specific transaction types, client relationships, and service models that InvestorMate actually operates. For Eshanee, that specificity made all the difference.
"The demo with Kaan and Lu was tremendously helpful and clearly translated an 88-page document for me precisely for my industry and our business."
— Eshanee Collins, Settlement Manager — InvestorMate
The Onboarding: From Legislation to Live Program
With confidence established, InvestorMate moved into Visibl's onboarding process — and it was the platform experience itself that validated their decision. The risk questionnaire and onboarding workflow are designed to ask the right questions in plain English, without requiring users to interpret regulatory language themselves.
The platform guides businesses through their service profile, client base, typical transaction values, payment methods, and the markets they operate in — building a tailored risk assessment from the ground up. For Emmanuel and Eshanee, this was the critical step: understanding InvestorMate's actual risk profile, not just a generic template.
"I have been thinking a lot about doing our risk assessment and making sure the core team understands our risk profile and subsequently the processes we'll need. The onboarding and risk questionnaire on the Visibl platform was so clear and easy — it steps you through clear questions (not legislation speak) to understand our services, client base, typical transactions, payments and markets. I felt pretty confident just interpreting this on the dashboard."
— Eshanee Collins, Settlement Manager — InvestorMate
But Visibl goes beyond the platform. Having access to dedicated Certified AML Specialists when you have a question or need a clarification is genuinely so valuable.
"Having a dedicated call with a Certified AML Specialist to talk it all through sealed the deal. We now have a clear view on risk and a live AML policy and program ready."
— Eshanee Collins, Settlement Manager — InvestorMate
The Outcome
InvestorMate went from compliance uncertainty to a fully live AML policy and program — with a documented risk assessment, a clear understanding of their obligations, and the confidence that their team knows what to do. The process didn't require weeks of legal consultations or the cost of engaging specialist compliance counsel to decipher legislation line by line.
Emmanuel can stay focused on what he does best: finding properties and building wealth for his clients. And Eshanee has the structured framework she needs to manage the compliance obligations that come with each settlement.
Why This Matters for Buyers Agents
InvestorMate's experience reflects a broader reality facing thousands of real estate businesses across Australia. Tranche 2 is not optional, and the obligations are substantive — but they are also manageable with the right support.
Visibl was built specifically to make AML compliance accessible for the non-bank businesses now captured under Australian law. The platform combines purpose-built technology with direct access to certified compliance specialists, so that businesses don't have to choose between compliance and productivity.
For buyers agents, real estate and property professionals navigating Tranche 2, the path forward doesn't have to mean 88 pages of legislation and months of uncertainty.
About Visibl
Visibl is an AML compliance platform purpose-built for businesses newly captured under Australia's Tranche 2 AML/CTF reforms. Visibl combines an intuitive risk assessment and policy-building platform with access to Certified AML Specialists, helping real estate professionals, accountants, lawyers, and other designated non-financial businesses meet their AUSTRAC obligations efficiently and confidently.
About InvestorMate
InvestorMate is a Sydney-based property investment advisory and buyers agency helping clients across Australia build wealth through strategic property investment. Founder Emmanuel Michael and his team guide buyers through a proven six-step process, from strategy and property sourcing through to ongoing portfolio management. Learn more at investormate.com.au