Artha Credit

Artha Solutions Pte Ltd (the “Company”) is a technology-based lending platform that offers an integrated, effective technology-based platform providing SMEs and their owners and stakeholders (referred to interchangeably as “Borrower” or "User”) access to a wide range of financing options through a combination of state-of-the-art technology, continuous innovation and rigorous credit management capabilities. Security and safety of our clients’ data and information is our top priority. The aforesaid explains how we handle and protect Borrower’s information and comply with the data protection laws of Singapore.

This privacy policy (“Privacy Policy”) forms a part of the Terms of Use governing the Borrower’s relationship with Artha Solutions Pte Ltd (referred to interchangeably as “Company” or “Artha“) and its related corporations and should be read in conjunction with any of the Terms & Conditions entered into between the Borrower and the Company.

Collection and Use of the Borrower’s Data and Information

1. Collection of Information
1. The Company collects information in the following ways:
   
   1. Information the Borrower Provides. We collect the information directly provided to Artha when the User visits our websites or register for Artha Services.
   2. Information We Collect Automatically. We collect information related to the usage of the Company’s Services and the devices used to access those Artha Services.
   3. Information We Collect from Other Sources. We collect information from third parties where the User has provided us with access to information from those third parties.


2. If the User declines to provide information where the Company requires such information to operate the Artha Services and fulfil our obligations, the User may not be able to use the applicable Artha Service(s). Situations where this may occur include:
   
   1. Where the Company asks the User to provide personal information to be able to add features or services to an existing account at his/her request;
   2. Where the Company asks the User to provide personal information to create an account and provide relevant services at his/her request; or
   3. Where a third-party application on Artha Platform asks the User to provide information to use their feature or service.
   
   
3. There may be situations where the User does not have the ability to decline to provide information. This includes where Artha automatically collects personal information through the User’s use of the Services.
2. Personal Data
1. “Personal Data” in this Privacy Policy means data which enables an individual to be identified including, but not limited to, information such as names, contact details, addresses and other identification details of Borrowers who access or use the Company’s website (the “Website”), or any of the services provided by Artha (the “Services”) through an online platform (the “Platform”) accessible through the Website or any of the Services, signatures, answers to questions intended for security verification, emergency contact numbers or call back contact details provided or made available to us when any Borrower accesses or uses the Website, Platform or the Services.


2. From time to time, the Company may collect Personal Data from (a) Borrowers, (b) third parties, including Borrower’s beneficial owners, partners, directors, officers or authorised signatories, employees, customers, payors, payees, guarantors, other security providers and other natural persons related to that Borrower (the “Relevant Individuals”) and/or (c) publicly available sources including credit bureaus, Personal Data about Borrowers, Relevant Individuals and related parties in connection with the access and use of the Website, Platform or any of the Services to provide more personalised service for our Borrowers. This may include:
   (a) the use of cookies in the Website, Platform and in the provision of the Services;
   (b) collection of information in relation to the devices (including device operating system, hardware version, settings, file and software names and types and device identifiers, device location, connection information such as the name of the ISP or mobile operator through which the Platform is accessed, browser type and IP address) which are used to access the Website or the Platform.


3. We may also use the financial account statements and other financial data that the Borrower provides to us or authorise us to have access (collectively, the User’s “Personal Financial Data”), in order to deliver the platform Service the Borrower has subscribed to. We will maintain such data as strictly confidential and will not sell, lease or distribute the same to any third party (other than certain trusted third party service providers involved in the operations of our business and performing services on our behalf, with restricted access to customer data and information, on a need-to-know basis only, and in compliance with this Privacy Policy) without the Borrower’s documented approval, unless we are required or requested to do so by law or any regulatory authority for the jurisdiction that we operate in. For the avoidance of doubt, Personal Financial Data for this purpose does not include information that is aggregated with similar data from other Borrowers to produce Meta Data as described below or is otherwise no longer identifiable to any specific Borrower of our platform. We will, however, share the Borrower’s information with the service providers that will provide the Borrower the specific service he has subscribed to, for the purpose of evaluation of his credit worthiness and loan evaluation.


3. Borrower Data
1. Borrower Data in this Privacy Policy means the data in respect of the business or company for which the Borrower has provided information to the Company for the purpose of supplementing and supporting the KYC and credit scoring of the Borrower and may include:
   
   1. KYC information about the Borrower for onboarding as required by regulators.
   2. Business information about the Borrower as required for credit evaluation.
   3. Financial and banking information about the Borrower as required for credit evaluation.
   4. Any other information as may be deemed appropriate and required for purposes of offering the services by the platform.
   5. The use of cookies on the Website, Platform and in the provision of the Services;
   6. Collection of information in relation to the devices (including device operating system, hardware version, settings, file and software names and types and device identifiers, device location, connection information such as the name of the ISP or mobile operator through which the Platform is accessed, browser type and IP address) which are used to access the Website or the Platform.


2. We will not sell, lease, or distribute the same to any third party without the Borrower’s documented approval, unless we are required or requested to do so by law or any regulatory authority for the jurisdiction that we operate in. Such data will be used solely to facilitate communication, and processing of internal administrative and record keeping and for “Know Your Customer” (KYC) and credit scoring purposes as required by our stakeholders, business partners and where applicable, regulatory authorities.


3. For the avoidance of doubt, Borrower Data for this purpose does not include information that is either in the public domain or becomes available in the public domain without any action by or fault of the Company.


4. Personal Identification Information
1. As stated earlier, we treat all of the Borrower’s Personal Identification Information with strict confidentiality. We will not sell, lease, or distribute the same to any third party without the Borrower’s documented approval, unless we are required or requested to do so by law or any regulatory authority for the jurisdiction that we operate in. Such data will be used solely to facilitate communication, and processing of internal administrative and record keeping and for “Know Your Customer” (KYC) purposes as required by our stakeholders, business partners and where applicable, regulatory authorities.


2. The Company may retain Personal Data for so long as one or more of the purposes for which it was collected remains valid, where required by regulation or law (national or international), or as required by its own record retention policies or own business purposes.


3. The Company may from time to time also disclose Personal Data for any of the purposes to its shareholders, directors, officers and employees and the following parties (whether inside or outside of Singapore):
   
   1. any agent, contractor, or third party service provider who provides banking, remittance, administrative, mailing, telecommunications, call centres, business process, travel, visa, knowledge management, human resource, data processing, information technology, computer, payment, debt collection, credit reference checks or securities clearing or risk modelling or analysis or other services to Artha in connection with the business operations of the Company and/or the Website, Platform or any of the Services;
   2. any person or entity employed by or acting on behalf of the Company or is a part of or related to any group of companies of which Artha forms part or is affiliated to;
   3. any person or entity to whom the Company is under an obligation or otherwise required to make disclosure pursuant to any applicable laws and regulations, including disclosure to courts, tribunals, and/or legal, regulatory, tax and government authorities and stock exchanges;
   4. any party giving or proposing to give a guarantee or third-party security to guarantee or secure the obligations of any Borrower;
   5. any party for purposes of conducting checks with the Do Not Call Registry;
   6. any party for purposes of meeting or complying with the Company’s internal policies and procedures and any applicable rules, laws, regulations, codes of practice or guidelines, orders or requests issued by any court, legal or regulatory bodies (both national and international) (including but not limited to disclosures to regulatory bodies, conducting audit checks or any investigations);
   7. any actual or proposed assignee of the Company or transferee of Artha’s rights in respect of all or any part of the assets or business of Artha; and
   8. any credit bureau (including without limitation Credit Bureau (Singapore) Pte Ltd) as well as the members of such credit bureau and other relevant third parties in connection with the use of the Platform (e.g. banks, financial intermediaries, insurers, reinsurers, escrow agents and other P2P platforms).
   
   
4. Without prejudice to the foregoing, Artha may disclose Personal Data to any person or entity to whom the Company is under an obligation or otherwise required to make disclosure pursuant to any applicable laws and regulations, including disclosure to courts, tribunals, and/or legal, regulatory, tax and government authorities in Singapore or otherwise.


5. Meta Data
1. For the purpose of producing statistical collective data amongst borrowers using Artha’s Platform (“Meta Data”), we may aggregate the Borrower’s Personal Financial Data together with similar data from other borrowers on the Platform. We may also do the same with any of the company information that he may provide to Artha. Meta Data will be produced in such a manner that the underlying data will be no longer identifiable to any specific Borrower. We may share Meta Data amongst Artha’s stakeholders, primarily the lenders and other users of the platform as part of the service provided, and also with our business partners and other third parties to help us make improvements and/or enhancements to our products and services and for marketing, research and academic purposes. We may also use such Meta Data for the purpose of creating our own aggregated analysis, normalised industry benchmarking and other lending performance related parameters. However, in all such instances, the Meta Data will no longer be directly identifiable to any specific Borrower.


6. Third Party End User License Terms
1. The Company adopts third party technology solutions from software solution vendors (“Provider”), which provides the key lending platform and aids the integration of the various services and mobile application in processing the various data required for evaluation of credit worthiness of each loan application and other services provided to the User by the platform. In accessing and using the Services the User represents that he/she is the legal owner of the Provider Account Data and that he/she has the authority to appoint and do expressly appoint the Company and its Vendor and/or our third party providers as the Borrower’s agent with limited power of attorney to access and retrieve Provider Account Data on the Borrower’s behalf. The User further acknowledges that Provider does not (nor does the Company or its third party providers) review or analyse Provider Account Data and the User agrees that we are not responsible for its completeness or accuracy. Any transactions or informational activities performed at any Provider’s website/portal are not made through the Services and Artha assumes no responsibility for such transactions or activities. The User acknowledges that he/she is solely responsible for any changes to Provider Account Data, and that any such changes must be made at the Provider’s website/portal.


2. The Company provides the User with opportunities to connect with third-party applications or services, such as through our Artha application partner ecosystem or integration partners. If the User chooses to use any third-party applications or services, we share information about the User including the Borrower’s username and any Content he/she may choose to use in connexion with those applications and services, and such third parties may contact the User directly.


3. The Borrower should note that this privacy notice does not apply to his/her use of such third-party applications and services, and we are not responsible for how those third parties collect, use, and disclose the Borrower’s information and Content. We encourage the Borrower to review the privacy notices of those third parties before connecting to or using their applications or services to learn more about their information and privacy practises.


7. Keeping the Borrower’s data and information safe - the steps we take
1. The Company is committed to securing the Borrower’s personal information. We take appropriate technological and organizational measures to help protect personal information from loss, theft, misuse and unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration and destruction. Artha Services complies with applicable data protection, privacy, and security breach notification laws.
   
   Some of the ways in which Artha protects the Borrower’s personal information include:
   1. We encrypt the Content when it is stored at rest in our data centers.
   2. We protect sensitive information with encryption during transmission over the public Internet.
   3. We keep the servers on which personal information is stored in a controlled environment with limited access.
   4. We maintain a wide variety of compliance and security programs.


2. The Steps we take
   
   1. We are committed to the safety and security of the Borrower’s data and information. We place the data and information in a protected and secure database and deploy firewalls, SSL and encryption technology for data transmission. We restrict access to customer data and information by our staff on a need-to-know basis only. We also implement and maintain procedures to monitor staff activity regarding such access.
   2. The aforementioned security efforts do not preclude us from the possibility of fraud, cyber-attacks, such as hacking, spyware and viruses, and we do not warrant that our servers or network will be immune from such attacks. We are not liable for any loss or damage arising from such risks.


3. The steps the User should take. Should the User provide the Company any Personal Data of the Borrower or others:
   1. the Borrower represents and warrants to the Company that (i) each individual (including himself) whose Personal Data has been provided to us, has been notified of the purposes for which data will be collected, processed, used or disclosed; and (ii) such individual’s consent for the collection, processing, use and disclosure of such Personal Data by Artha has been obtained and authorised by such individual.
   2. The Borrower shall notify us immediately of any withdrawal by any individual of his/her consent to the collection, processing, use and/or disclosure by the Company of his/her Personal Data provided to Artha. The withdrawal of such consent may affect the services which the Company is able to provide to the entity, such individual and/or the corporate the entity represents (including possible termination of the Borrower’s contractual relationship with us, subject to termination provisions relating to registered Borrowers and may be deemed a breach of its representation and undertakings to us).
   3. the Borrower shall ensure at all times that any information provided (including any Personal Data) to us is correct, accurate and complete, and that any consent given in relation to Personal Data shall, subject to all applicable laws and regulations, survive death, incapacity, bankruptcy or insolvency of any such individual and the termination or expiration of any account in connection with the use of the Platform.
   
   
4. The User should keep the Artha Borrower ID and password strictly confidential at all times and not share these details with anyone. In public areas, the User should exercise caution and not leave his/her computer unattended whilst logged into the account. Users should also avoid using public computer terminals to access the Artha account, unless the user can adequately verify that the terminal is free from spyware and that the person can erase all of the Borrower’s information upon exiting the terminal. We will not be liable for any loss or damage arising from unauthorised access to the Borrower’s account due to any failure to comply with these precautions or for any other reason.


8. Other data
1. The Company may record certain non-personal information such as website usage and browsing activity, data displayed or clicked on (such as UI elements), and others (such as IP address, cookie ID, and referrer URL). Along with cookies, Artha may also use third-party tracking technologies, such as Google Analytics, to record similar information regarding the Borrower and user’s activity on the Artha’s platform. We may grant access to the Borrower’s data and information to certain trusted third party services providers that we work with, but only to perform the service on our behalf with restricted access to customer data and information on a need-to-know basis only, and in compliance with this Privacy Policy.


9. Data Retention
1. We will delete the User’s original Personal Financial Data within a reasonable time after the relevant financial information has been extracted and processed into our database for the purpose of generating reports. However, data that has been merged with other Borrower data in the aggregate to create normalisation benchmarks, the Company’s own aggregated analysis, industry benchmarks etc. will be retained by the Company in the aggregate and will be subject to the same privacy guidelines as covered under the section Metadata.


2. We will retain the Borrower’s account information for as long as the Borrower uses Artha’s Platform. If the user decides to stop the service, we will delete all such data within a reasonable time after the termination of the service, subject to retention for purposes of complying with applicable laws, resolving disputes, enforcing the terms of our agreement with the Borrower and protecting the Company’s intellectual property rights.


3. The Borrower should note that Lender Bank(s) will have their own Privacy Policy and Data Retention Policy and may retain the Borrower’s data in accordance with such policies. The Company is not responsible for and has no connection with such data retention activities by the Lender Bank(s).


10. Updates/ Changes
1. The Borrower’s use of this website and the Platform is subject to our Terms of Use and this Privacy Policy. By using the Platform and the services, the Borrower is deemed to have accepted and agree to be bound by both of the above. We may make changes to either of these from time to time. We may notify the Borrower of such changes by any reasonable means, including by posting the revised version of these Terms of Use on the Site. The User’s use of the Site following changes to these Terms of Use will constitute his/her acceptance of those changes. These Terms of Use will be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Singapore.


2. The User may access or make corrections to any of the Borrower’s Personal Data held by Artha. To do so, please contact us (at contact@arthacredit.com). The Company reserves the right to charge such fees as itself incurs, and as it deems appropriate, for the grant of such access and to correct any Personal Data.

Contact/ Questions

If the User has any questions or concerns about this Privacy Statement or about our use or retention of your Personal Identification Information or Personal Financial Data, please contact us via email at contact@arthacredit.com