What we collect, and why.

What we collect

• Your name, email and phone number, so we can come back to you with options.
• Business details you give us: what the finance is for, the amount, how long you have been trading, approximate revenue.
• Financial documents you later provide to your broker by email: bank statements, tax returns, financial statements, debtor ledgers. The chat itself does not accept file uploads.
• When you make an enquiry, the first page you visited, the referring website, any referral code, and standard campaign parameters in the link. We use this only to understand which Ballast content and referral relationships produce enquiries.

Why we collect it

To assess which lenders on our panel are likely to fund you, to assemble a submission in each lender's format, and to answer the follow-up questions lenders ask. That is the entire purpose. We do not use your information to build a marketing list and we do not sell it.

Who we share it with

Lenders on our panel, and only once you have told us to proceed. Before anything is submitted we tell you which lenders will receive your file and which of them will conduct a credit search.

We also use service providers for hosting and email. Those providers may store data outside Australia. We take reasonable steps to ensure they handle it consistently with the Australian Privacy Principles.

Credit searches

Getting an indication from us does not require a credit check. A search only happens when you have chosen to proceed with a specific lender, and we tell you in advance which lenders search.

The chat, and where your messages go

The intake conversation on this site is handled by an AI assistant. What you type is sent to OpenRouter, which routes it to a large language model operated by OpenAI. Both providers are outside Australia. The chat does not accept file uploads, so no documents are sent to these providers. If you would rather not have your information processed this way, email us instead and a person will handle it.

The chat does not accept file uploads. Documents are only ever exchanged directly with your broker by email, and a person opens them.

We keep a record of the conversation. It is stored privately so a broker can pick up where the chat left off and so you are not asked the same questions twice. It is not public, and it is not used to build a marketing list. You can ask us to delete it.

The assistant gathers information. It does not assess you, approve anything, or give advice, and it is instructed not to recommend a lender, product or rate. A person reviews every file before it goes to a lender.

We keep first-touch attribution in your browser's session storage while that tab is open, then attach it to an enquiry if you submit one. It is not an advertising cookie, does not follow you across websites, and is not used to build a marketing profile.

Automated processing

We use software to help prepare submissions. A person reviews every file before it goes to a lender. No lending decision is made by us, automated or otherwise, because we are not the lender.

How long we keep it

While your enquiry is active and for as long afterwards as we are required to by law. If you ask us to delete your information and we are not required to retain it, we will delete it.

Access, correction and complaints

You can ask us for a copy of what we hold, ask us to correct it, or ask us to delete it. If you are unhappy with how we have handled your information you can complain to us first, and then to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner.