How we handle your personal information.

Who this policy covers

This policy applies to Opes Financial Solutions Pty Ltd (ACN 618 122 795, ABN 55 618 122 795). It covers three service lines: financial planning provided as Authorised Representative (AR 409415) of La Verne Capital Pty Ltd, finance broking provided as Authorised Credit Representative (CR 45250) of Outsource Financial Pty Ltd, and the buyer's agent service delivered with our licensed BA partner.

Our licensees, La Verne Capital Pty Ltd and Outsource Financial Pty Ltd, maintain their own privacy policies. When we collect personal information on their behalf for advice or credit assistance, those policies also apply. We can provide copies on request.

What we collect

The information we collect depends on the service you engage. Typical categories include:

• Identity and contact information: name, date of birth, residential address, phone, email.
• Financial information: income, assets, liabilities, expenses, superannuation balances, bank statements, payslips, and tax file information where lawfully collected.
• Health and underwriting information collected with your consent for risk insurance advice.
• Employment, family, and dependant information relevant to advice and loan serviceability.
• Identity verification documents (driver licence, passport) under AML/CTF obligations.
• Website data: IP address, cookies, and analytics events as described below.
• Website assistant conversations: anything you type into the assistant on our website, and its replies, as described below.

How we collect it

We collect personal information directly from you through fact-finder forms, the Discovery Questionnaire, phone calls, email, in-person meetings, and the client portal. With your written authority we may collect information from third parties such as lenders, super funds, insurers, accountants, and employers (for income verification). Where appropriate we also use publicly available sources, for example title searches conducted via a lender.

How we use and disclose it

We use your personal information to:

• Provide financial advice and prepare a Statement of Advice (SOA).
• Lodge loan applications with lenders on our panel, which includes more than 50 lenders. Frequently used lenders include ANZ, NAB, ME Bank, Bendigo Bank, Mortgage Ezy, and La Trobe. SMSF-specialist lenders include La Trobe, Mortgage Ezy, Pepper, and Granite Home Loans.
• Arrange insurance with risk insurers.
• Engage our buyer's agent partner on your behalf.
• Meet obligations under the Corporations Act 2001, the National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009, the AML/CTF Act 2006, and tax laws.

We do not sell personal information. We disclose it only to lenders, insurers, our licensees, our buyer's agent partner, ASIC, AUSTRAC, the ATO where required, and our IT and platform providers (such as HUB24, Praemium, and IOOF) under contract.

Overseas disclosure

Some of our service providers may store data outside Australia. Where that applies to your engagement, we will identify the relevant providers and jurisdictions in our service engagement letter before any cross-border transfer occurs.

One cross-border transfer applies to every visitor, not only clients: the website assistant described below sends your messages to AI infrastructure providers located in the United States in order to generate a reply. Do not type personal or sensitive information into the assistant. See The website assistant below.

Security and retention

Personal information is held in secured systems operated by our aggregator and platform providers. We retain client files for at least seven years from the end of the engagement, consistent with record-keeping obligations under the Corporations Act and the NCCP Act.

Cookies and the website

Our website uses cookies for analytics, the booking widget, the client portal session, and a live chat tool when it is enabled. The AI assistant described below does not use cookies. You can disable cookies in your browser settings. Instructions are available on the support pages of Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and Edge.

The website assistant

Our website includes an AI assistant that can summarise a page or answer general questions about our services. It is a general information tool. It has no access to client records, cannot see anything you have provided to us elsewhere, and does not provide personal financial advice.

Please do not enter personal or sensitive information into the assistant. It is not a secure channel for your financial details, health information, or identity documents. If you want to discuss your own circumstances, contact us directly.

When you use the assistant we record, for each exchange:

• The message you send and the reply you receive.
• The page you were on, the date and time, and how long the reply took.
• A randomly generated reference that groups the messages in a single conversation. It is created in your browser, is not linked to your identity, and is discarded when you close the tab.

We do not record your IP address, set any cookie, or use any device fingerprint in the assistant. Before a conversation is stored, we automatically mask email addresses, Australian phone numbers, and ABN-style numbers that appear in it. This masking is a safeguard, not a guarantee — it is another reason not to enter personal information in the first place.

We keep these records so that we, and our licensee, can review how the assistant is performing and confirm it is operating within the limits set for it. They are retained for no longer than is necessary for that purpose and to meet our record-keeping obligations.

To generate a reply, your message and the content of the page you are reading are sent to our AI infrastructure providers, who process them on servers in the United States and return the response. They act as our service providers for that purpose. If you would rather not have your messages processed this way, simply do not use the assistant — every page works normally without it, and you can contact us directly instead.

Access, correction, and complaints

You can request access to or correction of your personal information by writing to admin@opesfinancialsolutions.com.au or calling 1300 67 37 37.

Privacy complaints are handled internally first by Balki Balakrishnan, Principal. If we cannot resolve the matter, you may escalate to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority on 1800 931 678 (afca.org.au) for advice or credit issues, or to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner on 1300 363 992 (oaic.gov.au) for privacy issues.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. The "Last updated" date shown above is authoritative. A PDF copy is available on request.

Related documents: Financial Services Guide, Credit Guide, website terms, and general advice disclaimer. To raise something specific, please contact our office.