Who are we?
We are:
Pembroke VCT Plc (PVCT). Our contact details are as follows:
Mail: 3 Cadogan Gate, London, SW1X 0AS.
Email: info@pembrokevct.com
Telephone: +44 (0)20 7766 6900
and
Pembroke Investment Managers LLP (PIM). We are the manager of PVCT. We can also be contacted using the above details.
When this privacy policy refers to ‘we’, ‘us’ or ‘our’, it is referring to whichever of PVCT and PIM is responsible in the circumstances for processing your personal information.
Introduction
The protection of your privacy is important to us. We are committed to handling your personal information safely and securely. This means information that identifies you personally such as your name, contact details, “know your client” information, or data that can be linked with such information in order to identify you.
This privacy policy describes the types of personal information we collect from you, how we use the information, with whom we may share it, and the choices available to you regarding our use of the information.
When this privacy policy refers to ‘you’ or ‘your’, it is referring to:
- our shareholders (and from those interested in becoming shareholders);
- the managers, owners and other investors in existing and potential portfolio companies;
- suppliers, clients and other professional and business contacts; and
- visitors and users of www.pembrokevct.com and other websites or applications that may link to this privacy policy (together, the “Websites”).
The Websites are not intended for children and none of the other persons from whom we collect personal information are children. Accordingly, we do not knowingly collect information relating to children.
This privacy policy was last updated on 29 October 2021. It is kept under regular review and may be updated from time to time. Any changes we may make to our privacy policy in the future will be posted on this page and we may notify you of any important changes.
Quick Guide to Contents
1. What personal information do we collect about you and how is it collected?
2. How do we use your personal information?
3. How long do we keep your personal information for?
4. Who do we share your personal information with?
5. What happens if you do not provide us with the information we request?
6. Do we make automated decisions concerning you?
7. Do we use Cookies to collect personal information on you?
8. Do we transfer your personal information outside the UK?
9. Data security
13. How to complain
1. What personal information do we collect about you and how is it collected?
We may collect and process the following types of personal information about you in the following ways:
Information you give us by filling in forms or by corresponding with us by post, phone, email, or otherwise
If you are a potential investor in PVCT, then we may collect the following types of personal information:
- personal and business contact information (such as your name, postal and email address, and telephone number);
- “know your client” information (such as copies of passports, driving licences and utility bills, date and place of birth, and National Insurance number); and
- the information specified in our investor application form, including tax residence, tax identification number, bank account details, and information on the amount you wish to invest.
If you are a shareholder in PVCT then, in addition to the information collected at the application stage (see above), we will hold information on the details of your investment in PVCT, including the number and class of shares held, price paid, and share transfers made.
If you are a manager, owner or investor in an existing or potential portfolio company of PVCT, then we may collect the following types of information:
- personal and business contact information (such as your name, postal and email address, and telephone number);
- other information needed to confirm your identity (such as your date of birth, place of birth, and domicile); and
- information needed to understand and assess your business and career history (such as employment details, education and professional qualifications, directorships, shareholdings, investments, and references in the press and internet to you). We may also record our observations on your personal capabilities and strengths and weaknesses as a manager or entrepreneur.
In the course of a business relationship with you (or where such a relationship is possible), we may collect the following types of information:
- personal and business contact information (such as your name, postal and email address, and telephone number);
- “know your client” information (such as copies of passports, driving licences and utility bills, date and place of birth, and National Insurance number); and
- billing and payment information.
The types of information we collect on the Websites include:
- personal and business contact information (such as your name, postal and email address, and telephone number); and
- other personal information you submit to us via the Websites.
Information we collect automatically
When you visit our Websites or open our emails, we may collect certain information by automated means, such as cookies, web server logs, web beacons and JavaScript. The information we may collect in this manner includes your IP address, network location, browser characteristics, device characteristics, operating system, referring URLs, information on actions taken on our Websites, and dates and times of Website visits. Please see our Cookie Policy at www.pembrokevct.com for more details.
Telephone conversations held with our employees may be recorded in accordance with our regulatory obligations.
Personal information which is sensitive or which relates to criminal convictions
We do not collect any special categories of personal data about you (this includes details about your race or ethnicity, religious or philosophical beliefs, sex life, sexual orientation, political opinions, trade union membership, information about your health, and genetic and biometric data). Nor do we collect any information about criminal convictions and offences.
Your duty to inform us of changes
2. How do we use your personal information?
We will only use your personal information when the law allows us to. Most commonly, we will use your personal information in the following circumstances:
(a) To provide a requested service or to perform a contract that we will, or have, entered into with you.
(b) Where we need to comply with a legal or regulatory obligation.
(c) Where it is necessary for our legitimate interests (or those of a third party) (in particular – communicating with you, conducting pre-investment due diligence on potential portfolio companies, managing our investment in existing portfolio companies, improving our business and services to you, improving our Websites and preventing fraud or misuse of our Websites), and your interests and fundamental rights do not override those interests.
(d) Where we have your consent.
We set out below the specific ways in which we will use the personal information described in the section above entitled “What personal information do we collect about you and how is it collected?”. We may also use the information in other ways for which we provide specific notice at the time of collection.
We also identify below the legal basis we rely on to use your data in the manner described. Note that we may rely upon more than one lawful ground to use your personal information, depending on the specific purpose for which we are using it. Please contact us if you need details about the specific legal ground we are relying on to process your personal information where more than one ground has been set out below.
Information relating to potential investors
We need the information collected from potential investors in PVCT in order to assess whether you (or the legal entity you represent) are a suitable investor in the company, to communicate with you and to process any application you make to acquire shares in the company. In using your personal information in this way, we are exercising our legitimate interest to attract potential investors and to assess applicants’ suitability as shareholders. We also have legal obligations to obtain personal information on shareholders (and certain persons associated with them) under Anti-Money Laundering Regulations.
Information relating to shareholders
We need the information collected in relation to shareholders (and their representatives) of PVCT in order to manage your investment, to ensure your legal rights as a shareholder are respected and to communicate with you. This use of your personal information is therefore for the purposes of carrying out PVCT’s legal obligations to you as an investor.
Information relating to managers, owners and other investors in existing and potential portfolio companies
We need the information collected from managers, owners and other investors in existing and potential portfolio companies to determine whether to acquire or dispose of portfolio companies, and to monitor PVCT’s existing investments, in each case in accordance with our legitimate interests.
Information collected in the course of a business relationship
We may use the personal information described above for the following purposes:
- where agreed by you, to send you promotional material, newsletters and other communications, and in certain circumstances where we have a legitimate interest in sending you such material by virtue of our business relationship with you and you have not objected to this;
- to respond to your enquiries in our legitimate interest;
- to perform data analyses in our legitimate interest;
- to communicate to you about, and manage your participation in, events and programmes in our legitimate interest;
- to operate, evaluate and improve our business in our legitimate interest;
- to identify and prevent fraud and other illegal activities in our legitimate interest, and in some circumstances where we have a legal obligation to do so; and
- to enforce and comply with legal rights and obligations, including our terms and conditions.
Information collected via Websites
In addition, we use information collected through cookies and other automated means (within our legitimate interest to improve our Websites and provide you with a better browsing experience) for purposes such as:
- Customising visits to our Websites.
- Managing our Websites and other aspects of our business.
Balancing test
Where we rely on our legitimate interest as a ground for processing your personal information, we carry out a ‘balancing test’, to ensure that our processing is necessary and that your fundamental rights of privacy are not outweighed by our legitimate interests, before we go ahead with such processing. We keep a record of these balancing tests. You have a right to the information contained in these balancing tests on request and can find out more by contacting us using the details below.
Change of purpose
3. How long do we keep your personal information for?
We only retain your information for as long as it is necessary for us to use your information for the purposes described above. Please be advised that we may retain some of your information after we cease our relationship with you, for instance if it is necessary to meet our legal obligations, such as retaining the information for tax and accounting purposes or to comply with financial services regulations.
When determining the relevant retention periods, we will take into account factors including:
(a) the amount, nature and sensitivity of the information involved;
(b) the potential risk of harm from unauthorised use or disclosure of the information involved;
(c) our contractual obligations and rights in relation to the information involved;
(d) legal obligation(s) under applicable law to retain data for a certain period of time;
(e) our legitimate interest;
(f) statute of limitations under applicable law(s);
(g) (potential) disputes;
(h) if you have made a request to have your information deleted; and
(i) guidelines issued by relevant data protection authorities.
Otherwise, we will securely erase your information once it is no longer needed.
4. Who do we share your personal information with?
We may share your personal information with the persons, and for the purposes, described below. Third parties with whom we share your personal information comply with similar, and equally stringent, undertakings of privacy and confidentiality as we do. We do not allow them to use your personal information for their own purposes and only permit them to use your personal information for specified purposes and in accordance with our instructions.
Fundraising
Personal information relating to potential investors in PVCT (and their representatives) will be shared with third parties who provide services to us in connection with fundraising, such as placing agents, professional advisors, receiving agents and share registrars.
Portfolio companies
Personal information relating to managers, owners and other investors in existing and potential portfolio companies may be shared with professional advisers engaged by us in connection with the acquisition, holding and disposal of portfolio companies.
As we continue to develop our business, we will sell or purchase assets, including portfolio companies. In the event of the sale of a portfolio company, we may disclose the personal information of persons with a business relationship with that company to potential acquirers and their advisers.
Business processes
In connection with our day-to-day business processes, we share your personal information with third parties who perform functions on our behalf and who also provide services to us, such as professional advisors, share registrars, the company secretary, PVCT’s sponsor, IT consultants carrying out testing and development work on our business technology systems and function co-ordinators.
Sharing with group members and affiliates
We may share your personal information amongst our group members and affiliates in connection with the provision of services to you or for internal reasons, such as for business and operational purposes. Our group members and affiliates will only use your personal information for the purposes described in this privacy policy.
Other instances of sharing
If another entity acquires our business or merges with us, your personal information will be disclosed to such entity.
Where required, we share your personal information with third parties: (i) to comply with a legal obligation; (ii) when we believe in good faith that an applicable law requires it; (iii) at the request of governmental authorities conducting an investigation; (iv) to verify or enforce contracts or applicable policies; (v) to detect and protect against fraud, or any technical or security vulnerabilities; (vi) to respond to an emergency; or (vii) otherwise to protect the rights, property, safety, or security of third parties, visitors to our websites, our businesses or the public.
5. What happens if you do not provide us with the information we request?
If you do not provide personal information that we request, or if you withdraw your consent to the processing of your personal information, then we will not be able to provide the services to you for which the information is required.
6. Do we make automated decisions concerning you?
Automated decisions are those made without human intervention that have a legal or other similarly significant effect on you. We do not carry out automated decision making.
7. Do we use Cookies to collect personal information on you?
To provide a better service to you on our Websites, we use cookies to collect your personal information when you browse. See our cookie policy at www.pembrokevct.com for more information.
8. Do we transfer your personal information outside the UK?
We may transfer the personal information we collect about you between countries within the EU and between those EU member states and the UK. This is for the purposes of managing our business processes in an efficient manner, including through the use of EU based service providers. There are adequacy regulations in respect of the UK (from the perspective of the EU) and in respect of the EU (from the perspective of the UK). This means that the countries to which we transfer your data are deemed to provide an adequate level of protection for your personal information. If we transfer data to a country that has not been deemed to provide adequate data protection standards by the relevant authority, we always have security measures and approved standard contractual clauses or other adequate safeguards in place to protect your personal information. Please contact us if you would like more details about our safeguards for data transfers.
9. Data security
10. What are your rights?
By law, you have a number of rights when it comes to your personal information. Please contact us using the contact details set out in this privacy policy to exercise any of your rights. Further information and advice about your rights can be obtained from the data protection regulator in your country.
| Rights | What does this mean? |
| 1. The right to object to processing | You have the right to object to certain types of processing, including processing for direct marketing (i.e. if you no longer want to be contacted with potential opportunities). |
| 2. The right to be informed | You have the right to be provided with clear, transparent and easily understandable information about how we use your information and your rights. This is why we are providing you with the information in this policy. |
| 3. The right of access | You have the right to obtain access to your information (if we’re processing it), and certain other information (similar to that provided in this privacy policy). This is so you are aware and can check that we are using your information in accordance with data protection law. |
| 4. The right to rectification | You are entitled to have your information corrected if it is inaccurate or incomplete. |
| 5. The right to erasure | This is also known as ‘the right to be forgotten’ and, in simple terms, enables you to request the deletion or removal of your information where there is no compelling reason for us to keep using it. This is not a general right to erasure; there are exceptions. |
| 6. The right to restrict processing | You have rights to ‘block’ or suppress further use of your information. When processing is restricted, we can still store your information, but may not use it further. We keep lists of people who have asked for further use of their information to be ‘blocked’ to make sure the restriction is respected in future. |
| 7. The right to data portability | You have rights to obtain and reuse your personal information for your own purposes across different services. For example, if you decide to switch to a new provider, this enables you to move, copy or transfer your information easily between our IT systems and theirs safely and securely, without affecting its usability. |
| 8. The right to lodge a complaint | You have the right to lodge a complaint about the way we handle or process your personal information with your national data protection regulator. |
| 9. The right to withdraw consent | If you have given your consent to anything we do with your personal information, you have the right to withdraw your consent at any time (although if you do so, it does not mean that anything we have done with your personal information with your consent up to that point is unlawful). This includes your right to withdraw consent to us using your personal information for marketing purposes. |
We usually act on requests and provide information free of charge, but may charge a reasonable fee to cover our administrative costs of providing the information for:
- baseless or excessive/repeated requests; or
- further copies of the same information.
Alternatively, we may be entitled to refuse to act on the request in these circumstances.
Please consider your request responsibly before submitting it. We will respond as soon as we can. Generally, this will be within one month from when we receive your request, but, if the request is going to take longer to deal with, we will be sure to inform you.
Please note that you may exercise your rights in relation to personal information collected on the Websites at any time and may opt out of any and all marketing at any time, by contacting us using the contact details below.
11. How will we contact you?
We may contact you by phone, post, email or social media. If you prefer a particular contact method over another, please let us know.
12. How can you contact us?
If you have any inquires, you can contact us by email on info@pembrokevct.com or by telephone on +44 (0)20 7766 6900.
You have the right to make a complaint at any time to the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) at https://ico.org.uk/concerns/handling/ or on +44 (0)303 123 1113. However, we would, appreciate the chance to deal with your concerns before you approach the ICO, so please contact us in the first instance.