Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy describes how The Catalyst FZE (“The Catalyst”, “we”, “us” or “our”) collects, uses, stores, discloses and protects personal data when you visit or interact with our website (https://thecatalystfze.com), use our services, or otherwise provide information to us. It explains your rights and choices regarding your personal data and how to contact us. This Policy is drafted to comply with applicable UAE data protection law (including Federal Decree-Law No. 45 of 2021 on the Protection of Personal Data where applicable), relevant free-zone rules, and recognised international standards such as the GDPR principles where appropriate.

Scope and Applicability

This Policy applies to personal data that we collect about:

• Visitors to our website;
• Clients, prospective clients and their authorised representatives;
• Suppliers, contractors and other business contacts; and
• Job applicants and employees engaged by us or our partners.

Personal Data We Collect

We collect personal data that is necessary for us to provide services, communicate, comply with legal obligations, and improve our business. Categories of personal data include:

• Identity and contact data: name, company name, trade licence or registration number, job title, email address, postal address, telephone and mobile numbers.
• Identification and verification data: passport or national ID numbers, residency or visa information, Emirates ID, proof of address, corporate documents, shareholder and beneficial owner information (for KYC/AML).
• Financial and transactional data: bank account details, payment card information (processed via third-party payment processors), billing records, invoices, and payment history.
• Contract and service data: proposals, contracts, service preferences, correspondence, case notes, and records of services provided.
• Technical and usage data: IP address, device identifiers, browser type and version, operating system, pages visited, referral source, and cookies data collected through our website and analytics tools.
• Communications data: messages, emails, call recordings (where permitted), meeting notes, and marketing preferences.
• Employment and recruitment data: CVs, qualifications, references, interview notes, and work history (for candidates and staff).

Lawful Bases for Processing

We process personal data only when we have a lawful basis to do so, including:

• Performance of a contract: to provide services you request;
• Legal obligation: to comply with anti-money laundering (AML), counter-terrorist financing (CTF), tax, immigration and other regulatory requirements;
• Legitimate interests: to manage our business, prevent fraud, defend legal claims, improve services, and ensure network and information security, balanced against your privacy rights; and
• Consent: where we request your permission (for example, marketing communications or certain cookies). You may withdraw consent at any time where processing is based on consent.

How We Use Personal Data

• To provide and manage the services you request, including company formation, banking introductions, residency and visa services, accounting, and tax compliance.
• To carry out identity verification and due diligence required by law and industry standards (KYC/AML/CTF), including background and sanctions screening.
• To process payments, issue invoices and collect fees. We may retain limited payment data and transaction records for accounting, audit and dispute-resolution purposes.
• To communicate with you about your account, service updates, requests, and support.
• To manage recruitment, onboarding and HR-related matters for our personnel.
• To operate, secure and improve our website, detect and prevent fraud, and monitor usage and performance.
• To comply with legal, regulatory and tax obligations and to respond to lawful requests from government, regulatory or judicial authorities.
• For marketing and business development where permitted by law and where you have not opted out.

Sharing and Disclosure of Personal Data

We do not sell your personal data. We may share personal data with:

• Service providers and processors engaged by us (for example, payment processors, cloud hosting providers, document management, identity verification and background screening providers). These third parties act on our instructions and are contractually required to protect your data;
• Banks, free zone or licensing authorities, government departments, immigration and tax authorities as required to deliver services or by law;
• Professional advisers, auditors and insurers where necessary to protect our legal interests or manage claims;
• Other parties where you have given consent, or where required by applicable law or a valid court/administrative order.

International Transfers

Personal data we collect may be transferred to, stored, and processed in jurisdictions outside your country of residence, including the UAE and other countries where our service providers operate. Where transfers are made to jurisdictions without an equivalent level of data protection, we will put in place appropriate safeguards (such as standard contractual clauses, binding corporate rules or equivalent protections) to protect your personal data and comply with applicable legal requirements.

Retention of Personal Data

We retain personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, to comply with applicable laws (including retention periods for AML, tax and corporate records under UAE law), to resolve disputes and to enforce our agreements. Specific retention periods vary by data type and legal requirement; for example, accounting and corporate records may be retained for the period required by tax and corporate law, typically several years.

Data Security

We implement administrative, technical and physical measures designed to protect personal data from accidental or unlawful loss, access, disclosure, alteration or destruction. Measures include access controls, encryption in transit and at rest where appropriate, firewalls, secure data centres, regular vulnerability assessments, staff training and contractual controls with processors. While we take reasonable steps to protect data, no system can be guaranteed as perfectly secure. You should take care when transmitting sensitive information to us and contact us if you have concerns.

Cookies and Tracking Technologies

Our website uses cookies and similar tracking technologies to provide functionality, measure performance, and support marketing. Cookies may be classified as strictly necessary, performance, functional or targeting/advertising. You can control cookie preferences through your browser settings and, where provided, our cookie consent tool. Disabling certain cookies may affect site functionality.

Your Rights and Choices

Subject to applicable law, you may have the following rights with respect to your personal data:

• Right to access: request confirmation whether we process your data and request a copy of that data;
• Right to rectification: request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data;
• Right to erasure: request deletion of personal data where there is no lawful basis for continuing processing and subject to legal retention requirements;
• Right to restriction or objection: request restriction of processing or object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing;
• Right to data portability: where applicable, request transfer of certain data to you or another controller in a structured, commonly used format; and
• Right to withdraw consent: where processing is based on consent.

To exercise your rights, please contact us using the details in the “Contact Us” section below. We may ask for information to verify your identity before fulfilling requests. We will respond to requests in accordance with applicable law and may refuse or limit requests if exceptions apply.

Children’s Data

Our services are not directed to children under 18. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children. If we become aware that we have collected personal data from a child in a manner that is not permitted by law, we will take steps to delete that data promptly.

Payments, Fees and Protection Against Legal Penalties

We process payments and fees in connection with our services. Payment processing may be handled by authorised third-party payment processors and banks. When you make payments, we collect transactional information necessary to process the payment and to comply with financial, tax and AML obligations. We maintain records of payments and invoices as required by law.

To safeguard The Catalyst’s fees and reduce legal risk:

• We require adequate client due diligence and documentation before commencing fee-based services; failure to provide lawful documentation may prevent service delivery and could result in retention of fees paid to cover administrative costs and compliance work performed up to the point of termination.
• Fees are non-refundable for services already rendered or where regulatory or statutory processes have been initiated on your behalf, except where otherwise agreed in writing or required by law.
• We reserve the right to suspend or terminate services if providing the service would, in our reasonable judgment, expose The Catalyst to regulatory, criminal or civil liability (including sanctions, AML/CTF breaches or other legal penalties). In such cases, fees may be retained to cover costs and compliance work; we will provide a written explanation where permitted by law.
• We log and retain records of compliance checks and communications to demonstrate our compliance with AML, sanctions screening, and other legal obligations.

Legal Disclosure and Law Enforcement

We may disclose personal data if required by law, regulation or a valid legal process, or to respond to requests from courts, regulators or competent authorities. We may also disclose personal data to protect our rights, property or safety, or that of our clients, employees or others.

Third-Party Sites and Links

Our website may contain links to third-party websites. This Privacy Policy does not apply to third-party sites, which may have their own privacy policies. We encourage you to review the privacy practices of those sites before providing personal information.

Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal requirements, or services. When we make material changes, we will post the revised Policy on our website with an updated effective date. Continued use of our services after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated Policy where permitted by law.

Contact Us

If you have questions, requests or concerns about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, or to exercise your rights, please contact The Catalyst FZE by email at info@thecatalystfze.com or by phone at +971 56 219 2080.