Privacy Policy

1. WHO WE ARE AND KEY ROLES

1.1 The Controller: Founders Brands Limited (Company No. 15716753), registered at 180 Strand, 6th Floor, London, WC2R 3DA, is the primary data controller for the Service.

1.2 Independent Controllers (Member-to-Member): A critical part of our Service is facilitating introductions. You acknowledge that once we introduce you to another member and you exchange personal data directly outside the platform, each member acts as an independent controller of that data. We are not responsible for how other members process your data once it is shared outside our platform environment.

1.3 Shareholders: We are backed by Founders Forum Group and Globant, both shareholders in Founders Brands Limited. They may access data strictly to support platform curation, network quality, infrastructure, and development. They do not have permission to use your personal data for their own independent marketing purposes unless you have provided them with separate, explicit consent.

2. DATA WE COLLECT

2.1 We collect and process the following categories of personal data:

3. HOW WE USE YOUR DATA

3.1 We use your personal data for the following purposes and legal bases:

4. ALGORITHMIC MATCHING AND AI

4.1 Our Service uses algorithms to suggest connections between founders and corporates based on the information you and other members provide.

4.2 Human decision-making: Unlike ``automated decision-making`` under Article 22 of UK GDPR, all final decisions to connect are made by humans (the members themselves). Our algorithms suggest potential matches; you decide whether to pursue them.

4.3 AI training: We may use anonymised interaction data to train and refine our AI models. This data is stripped of identifiers and cannot be traced back to an individual or specific proprietary challenge.

5. WHO WE SHARE YOUR DATA WITH

5.1 We share your personal data only with the following categories of recipients:

6. INTERNATIONAL DATA TRANSFERS

6.1 Your data is primarily hosted in the United Kingdom (AWS eu-west-2, London).

6.2 For international service providers, we ensure protection via appropriate safeguards:

• Globant (Colombia): Colombia has received an adequacy decision from the UK, meaning transfers are permitted without additional safeguards
• US-based providers: We use UK International Data Transfer Agreements (IDTAs) or rely on the provider's certification under the UK Extension to the EU-US Data Privacy Framework where applicable

7. DATA RETENTION AND ANONYMISATION

7.1 We retain your personal data for the duration of your membership and for a reasonable period thereafter to comply with legal obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements.

7.2 Upon termination: We will delete your personal identifiers within 30 days of your membership ending.

7.3 Anonymised data: We may retain anonymised interaction data (e.g., "Founder A matched with Corporate B") for our internal analytics and AI training. This data is stripped of personal identifiers and no longer constitutes "personal data" under UK GDPR.

8. DATA SECURITY

8.1 We implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data, including:

• Encryption in transit using TLS 1.3
• Encryption at rest using industry-standard encryption
• Secure authentication mechanisms
• Regular security testing (penetration testing)
• Access controls limiting who can access your data
• Monitoring and logging of platform activity

9. COOKIES

9.1 We use cookies and similar technologies on the Service:

9.2 You can manage your cookie preferences when you first visit the Service. The platform works without analytics cookies. You can also control cookies through your browser settings.

10. YOUR RIGHTS

10.1 Under UK data protection law, you have the following rights:

• Right of access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
• Right to rectification: Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data
• Right to erasure: Request deletion of your personal data in certain circumstances
• Right to restrict processing: Request that we limit how we use your data
• Right to data portability: Receive your data in a structured, machine-readable format
• Right to object: Object to processing based on legitimate interests, including our matching functionality
• Rights related to automated decision-making: As noted in clause 4.2, our matching algorithm suggests connections but you make all final decisions; however, you may request human review of match recommendations

10.2 To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at hello@founders-match.co. We will respond within one month. There is no fee for most requests, but we may charge a reasonable fee for manifestly unfounded or excessive requests.

11. CHILDREN

11.1 The Service is a business-to-business platform and is not intended for individuals under 18 years of age. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children. If we become aware that we have collected personal data from a child, we will take steps to delete that information.

12. CHANGES TO THIS POLICY

12.1 We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. If we make material changes, we will notify you by email or through the Service at least 14 days before the changes take effect. The date at the top of this Policy indicates when it was last updated.

13. COMPLAINTS

13.1 If you have concerns about how we handle your personal data, please contact us first at hello@founders-match.co so we can try to resolve the issue.

13.2 You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO):

14. CONTACT US

14.1 If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us: