1. Background
1.1 This Privacy Notice explains how Devon Equity Management Limited and its affiliates, including the funds in which you are invested, together Controllers (referred to collectively as “Devon” “we”, “us” or “our”), collect and process certain Personal Data. Devon is responsible for ensuring that it uses that Personal Data in compliance with data protection laws. If you are a (prospective) investor, Personal Data provided or collected in connection with the acquisition and holding of shares will be processed by the concerned funds as controller.
1.2 At Devon we respect the privacy of individuals and we are committed to keeping all your Personal Data secure. This Privacy Notice applies to individuals outside our organisation with whom we interact, including but not limited to visitors to our website; clients and their personnel; vendors and service providers; visitors to our offices; and registrants for Devon events, and (prospective) investors in our funds and their representative(s), including, without limitation, legal representatives and authorised signatories, employees, directors, officers, trustees, settlors, their shareholders and/or unitholders, nominees and/or ultimate beneficial owner(s), as applicable (together, “you”)..
1.3 We use the following definition in this Privacy Notice: “Personal Data” means any data which relates to a living individual who can be identified from that data or from that data and other information which is in the possession of, or is likely to come into the possession of, Devon (or its representatives or service providers). In addition to factual information, it includes any expression of opinion about an individual and any indication of the intentions of Devon or any other person in respect of an individual.
2. The products and services we provide
2.1 This Privacy Notice concerns the following categories of information that we collect about you when providing the following products and services (together, the “services”):
- Information we receive through our websites (“Devon Websites”);
- Information we receive through our products, notably Devon Equity Funds RAIF and European Opportunities Trust PLC (“Devon Products”);
- Information we receive through our support, mobile security solution or cloud-based services (“Devon Services”).
- Information we receive through subscriptions to our offerings (“Devon Subscriptions”).
3. The types of personal data we collect
3.1 Many of the services offered by Devon require us to obtain Personal Data about you in order to perform the services we have been engaged to provide. In relation to each of the services described at section 2.1 above, we will collect and process the following Personal Data about you:
Information that you provide to Devon:
This includes information about you that you provide to us. The nature of the services you are requesting will determine the kind of Personal Data we might ask for, though such information may include (by way of a non-exhaustive list) basic Personal Data such as first name; family name; job title; company name; company email address; business phone number; business address; city; postcode; country; and/or banking data.
Failure to provide certain requested Personal Data may result in the impossibility to acquire or maintain shares in Devon Funds.
Information that we collect or generate about you includes (by way of non-exhaustive list):
- a file with your client records and contact history to be used for enquiry purposes so that we may ensure that you are satisfied with the services which we have provided to you;
- financial and credit history information, the sources of the funds used for acquiring or subscribing in our funds, current and historic investments, investment preferences and invested amount, “know your customer” and anti-money laundering related information; and
- details of site and marketing/communication preferences.
Personal Data may be collected through publicly accessible websites, social media, subscription services, world-check database, sanction lists, centralised investor databases, public registers or other publicly accessible sources or proprietary databases.
Information we may obtain from other sources include:
Cookies
- When you visit Devon Websites, cookies may be used to collect information about the services that you use, and how you use them. Cookies are essentially a small amount of data which is transferred to and sometimes updated on your computer or other devices by our web servers.
Anonymised data
- In addition to the categories of Personal Data described above, Devon will also process further anonymised information and data that is not processed by reference to a specific individual.
4. How we use your information
4.1 Your Personal Data may be stored and processed by us in the following ways and for the following purposes:
- for ongoing review and improvement of the information provided on Devon Websites to ensure they are user friendly and to prevent any potential disruptions or cyber-attacks;
- to conduct analysis required to detect malicious data and understand how this may affect your IT system;
- for statistical monitoring and analysis of current attacks on devices and systems and for the on-going adaptation of the solutions provided to secure devices and systems against current attacks;
- for in-depth threat analysis;
- to understand your needs and interests;
- for the management and administration of our business;
- to allow you to use and access the functionality provided by the Devon Products;
- to offer investments and subscriptions in Devon Products;
- to assess your application for Devon Products, where applicable;
- to set up customers to use Devon Products;
- to understand feedback on Devon Products and to help provide more information on the use of those products and services quickly and easily;
- to communicate with you in order to provide you with services or information about Devon and Devon Products;
- in particular to open account with Devon Products, to manage and administer your shares on an on-going basis, including processing subscriptions and redemptions, conversion, transfer and additional subscription requests;
- to update and maintain the register of shareholders of the Devon Funds;
- in order to comply with and in order to assess compliance with applicable laws, rules and regulations, and internal policies and procedures; or
- for the administration and maintenance of databases storing Personal Data.
4.2 However when we use Personal Data we make sure that the usage complies with law and the law allows us and requires us to use Personal Data for a variety of reasons, including but not limited to the following:
- in order to perform our contractual obligations;
- where we have obtained your consent;
- where we have legal and regulatory obligations that we have to discharge;
- where we may need to do so in order to establish, exercise or defend our legal rights or for the purpose of legal proceedings;
- the use of your Personal Data as described is necessary for our legitimate business interests, such as:
- allowing us to effectively and efficiently manage and administer the operation of our business;
- maintaining compliance with internal policies and procedures;
- monitoring the use of our copyrighted materials;
- enabling quick and easy access to information on Devon Products;
- offering optimal, up-to-date security solutions for mobile devices and IT systems; and
- obtaining further knowledge of current threats to network security in order to update our security solutions and provide these to the market.
4.3 We will take steps to ensure that the Personal Data is accessed only by employees of Devon that have a need to do so for the purposes described in this Privacy Notice.
4.4 We will process your Personal Data to comply with legal or regulatory obligations including but not limited to applicable fund law, anti-money laundering and counter terrorist financing (AML-CTF) legislation, prevention and detection of crime, tax law such as reporting to the tax authorities under Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) or any other tax identification legislation to prevent tax evasion and fraud as applicable, and to prevent fraud, bribery, corruption and the provision of financial and other services to persons subject to economic or trade sanctions on an on-going basis in accordance with our AML-CTF procedures.
4.5 The (prospective) investors acknowledge that Devon may be obliged to collect and report any relevant information, including Personal Data, in relation to investors and their acquisition and holding of shares (including but not limited to name and address, date of birth and U.S. tax identification number (TIN), account number, balance on account, the “Tax Data”) to the Luxembourg tax authorities (Administration des contributions directes) which will exchange this information (including Personal Data, financial and tax information) on an automatic basis with the competent authorities in the United States of America or other permitted jurisdictions (including the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) or other US competent authority and foreign tax authorities located outside the European Union) only for the purposes provided for in FATCA and CRS at OECD and European levels or equivalent Luxembourg legislation.
4.6 It is mandatory to answer questions and requests with respect to the investors’ identification and shares acquired and held in the Devon Fund and, as applicable, FATCA and/or CRS. Devon reserves the right to reject any application for shares if the prospective investors do not provide the requested information and/or documentation and/or has not itself complied with the applicable requirements. The (prospective) investors acknowledge that failure to provide relevant Personal Data in the course of their relationships with Devon may result in incorrect or double reporting, prevent them from acquiring or maintaining their shares and may be reported to the relevant UK or Luxembourg authorities.
5. Disclosure of your information to third parties
5.2 We may also share your Personal Data outside of Devon for the following purposes:
- with our affiliated companies or other trusted businesses or persons (e.g. the AIFM, the administrative and domiciliary agent and registrar and transfer agent, the depositary and paying agent) for the purpose of processing personal data (as independent controllers or as processors on our behalf) for the above stated purposes;
- with our business partners. For example, this could include our partners from whom you or your company or your organisation purchased the Devon Product(s) or invested in the Devon Funds. Personal Data will only be transferred to a business partner who is contractually obliged to comply with appropriate data protection obligations and the relevant privacy and confidentiality legislation;
- with third-party agents and contractors for the purposes of providing services to us (for example, Devon’s accountants, professional advisors, IT and communications providers and debt collectors). These third parties will be subject to appropriate data protection obligations and they will only use your Personal Data as described in this Privacy Notice;
- to the extent required by law, for example if we are under a duty to disclose your Personal Data in order to comply with any legal obligation (including, without limitation, in order to comply with tax reporting requirements and disclosures to courts and regulators), or to establish, exercise or defend its legal rights;
- with target funds and any target entities, and/or their related entities in or through which the Devon Products intend to invest;
- if we sell our business or assets, in which case we may need to disclose your Personal Data to the prospective buyer for due diligence purposes; and
- if we are acquired by a third-party, in which case the Personal Data held by us about you will be disclosed to the third-party buyer.
7. How we safeguard your information
7.1 We have extensive controls in place to maintain the security of our information and information systems. Appropriate controls (such as restricted access) are placed on our computer systems. Physical access to areas where Personal Data is gathered, processed or stored is limited to authorised employees.
7.2 As a condition of employment, Devon employees are required to follow all applicable laws and regulations, including in relation to data protection law. Unauthorised use or disclosure of confidential client information by a Devon employee is prohibited and may result in disciplinary measures.
8. How long we keep your personal data
8.1 How long we will hold your Personal Data for will vary and will be determined by the following criteria:
- the purpose for which we are using it – Devon will need to keep the data for as long as is necessary for that purpose; and
- legal obligations – laws or regulation may set a minimum period for which we have to keep your Personal Data.
8.2 In particular as regards investors, we retain Personal Data until they cease to hold shares in Devon Funds and a subsequent period of 10 years thereafter to the extent necessary to comply with applicable laws and regulations or to establish, exercise or defend actual or potential legal claims, subject to the applicable statutes of limitation, unless a longer period is required by applicable laws and regulations.
9. Your rights
9.1 In all the above cases in which we collect, use or store your Personal Data, you may have the following rights and, in most cases, you can exercise them free of charge. These rights include:
- the right to obtain information regarding the processing of your Personal Data and access to the Personal Data which we hold about you;
- the right to withdraw your consent to the processing of your Personal Data at any time where such processing is based on your consent;
- in some circumstances, the right to receive some Personal Data in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format and/or request that we transmit those data to a third-party where this is technically feasible. Please note that this right only applies to Personal Data which you have provided directly to Devon;
- the right to request that we rectify your Personal Data if it is inaccurate or incomplete;
- the right to request that we erase your Personal Data in certain circumstances. Please note that there may be circumstances where you ask us to erase your Personal Data but we are legally entitled to retain it;
- the right to object to, or request that we restrict, our processing of your Personal Data in certain circumstances. Again, there may be circumstances where you object to, or ask us to restrict, our processing of your Personal Data but we are legally entitled to refuse that request; and
- the right to lodge a complaint with the relevant data protection regulator if you think that any of your rights have been infringed by us.
9.2 You can exercise your rights by contacting us using the details listed in section 10 below.
10. Questions and concerns
10.1 If you have any questions or concerns about Devon’s handling of your Personal Data, or about this notice, please contact us using the following contact information:
Address: Devon Equity Management Limited, 123 Victoria Street, London SW1E 6DE
Telephone: +44 20 3985 0445
Email Address: enquiries@devonem.com
For your protection, we record telephone calls and may use them for monitoring purposes.
We are usually able to resolve privacy questions or concerns promptly and effectively. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive, you may escalate concerns to the applicable privacy regulator in your jurisdiction. Upon request, we will provide you with the contact information for that regulator.
Devon Equity Management Limited’s registered office address is 123 Victoria Street, London SW1E 6DE. Registered in England & Wales No. 11939535. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, whose address is 12 Endeavour Square, London E20 1JN, under FRN 841960