Privacy
Ako Capital's Privacy Policy and Principles
The privacy of our investors, business owners, and partners is very important to us. Ako Capital (“the Firm") is committed to protecting your privacy and maintaining the confidentiality of your personal information. Ako Capital has put in place policies and procedures to effectively safeguard any confidential information that we have on file or collect. To meet our obligations, we closely follow the ten fundamental principles set out under the federal Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act ("PIPEDA").
What is Personal Information?
The term "personal information" refers to any information that specifically identifies you, including information such as your name, business address, telephone numbers, email address, employment history, business ownership details, financial information relating to your company, and other information provided in connection with a potential business transaction or investment relationship.Personal information does not include anonymized or aggregated data that cannot be used to identify you, or publicly available information such as business contact information used for professional purposes.
Why We Need the Information
Generally, we need to collect personal information to:
Understand your business, its operations, financial position, and growth objectives
Evaluate potential business acquisition or investment opportunities
Conduct due diligence on target companies and their owners
Develop appropriate transaction structures and investment plans
Provide ongoing advisory, operational, or consulting services
Meet regulatory and contractual requirements relating to the services provided
Communicate with you regarding relevant opportunities, updates, or industry insights (with your consent)
How Do We Collect Your Personal Information?
We collect and maintain personal information about you when you engage with us through our website, submit inquiries via lead generation forms, or enter into discussions regarding a potential transaction. We collect your personal information to meet legal and regulatory requirements directly from you, members of your management team, and other professional advisors or individuals to whom you give consent, that provide you with advice, service, and products in connection with your business or investment needs.Your personal information may be collected from a variety of sources, including but not necessarily limited to the following:
Lead generation forms, subscription agreements, applications, questionnaires, or other forms that you submit to us
Business plans, financial statements, tax returns, customer contracts, and other financial documents supplied to us by you or your other professional advisors
Meetings, telephone conversations, and video conferences with you
Emails and correspondence with you
Interactions with our advertisements on Meta platforms (Facebook, Instagram) or other digital channels
Public sources, including company registries, industry databases, or commercial information providers
Referrals from professional advisors, brokers, or business associates.We have professional and legal requirements to update certain personal information when a material change occurs in your circumstances or when necessary for transaction evaluation purposes.
Website Inquiries and Lead Generation
Ako Capital provides options on our website and through Meta advertising platforms for visitors to submit inquiries regarding business acquisition, investment opportunities, or advisory services. When you use these features, we may collect your contact information, such as your name, email address, phone number, and business details, to respond to your inquiry and provide relevant information about our services.
Purpose of Collection
The information collected through our website and lead generation forms is used solely for:
Responding to your inquiry in a timely manner
Evaluating whether your business aligns with our investment criteria
Sending you relevant information and updates about our services (with your consent)
Maintaining a record of our communications for compliance and relationship management purposes.
Ako Capital will not share, sell, or disclose your contact information to third parties without your consent, except as required by law or in connection with a potential transaction as described in the "Who Do We Share Your Personal Information With?" section below.
Opt-Out
If you no longer wish to receive communications from us, you may unsubscribe at any time by following the opt-out instructions provided in our emails or by contacting us directly.
Advertising and Information Collection
Ako Capital may collect certain personal information through our advertising platforms to better serve and inform you about our services. This information may include, but is not limited to, contact details such as your name, email address, and phone number, as well as information on your interactions with our ads, such as form submissions, clicks, or page visits.
Purpose of Collection
The information we collect through advertising platforms is used solely for the purpose of:
Responding to inquiries about our services;Sharing relevant updates and insights about our investment activities
Evaluating potential business acquisition opportunities
Improving the relevance and effectiveness of our advertising
We will not share, sell, or disclose your information to third parties without your consent, except as required by law or as described in the "Who Do We Share Your Personal Information With?" section below.
Data Security
We implement reasonable security measures to protect your personal information from unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. These measures include:
Encryption of data transmitted via our website and digital platforms
Access controls limiting personal information to authorized personnel only
Secure storage on protected servers with industry-standard safeguards
Confidentiality agreements with employees and third-party service providers
Regular review and updating of security practices to address emerging threats
While we strive to protect your personal information, no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security but will notify you promptly in the event of a breach that poses a real risk of significant harm.
How Do We Use Your Personal Information?
We collect and maintain your personal information in order to evaluate business acquisition opportunities, provide advisory services, recommend transaction structures, and allow us to establish your identity, protect from error and fraud, and comply with the law. In addition, we may use your personal information for:
Assessing the suitability of your business for potential acquisition or investment
Conducting due diligence and evaluating transaction terms
Liaising with your other professional advisors (with your consent)
Verifying and correcting your personal information
Providing you and/or your other professional advisors with transaction updates, due diligence requests, and other information necessary to evaluate and complete a transaction
Sending you relevant industry insights, investment updates, or event invitations (with your consent)
Maintaining compliance records and meeting regulatory obligations.
Who Do We Share Your Personal Information With?
We may transfer your personal information, when necessary, to our third-party service providers and to our agents in connection with the services we provide related to your business or investment relationship. Such information is only used for the purposes identified above. Ako Capital will use contractual or other means to provide a comparable level of protection while the information is being handled by a third-party service provider or agent. The following is a list of such third-party service providers and agents:
Professional advisors, such as lawyers, accountants, tax advisors, or consultants engaged in connection with transactions
Due diligence providers, including financial, legal, operational, or technical assessment firms
Technology providers, such as website hosting, CRM systems, email marketing platforms, and cloud storage providers
Potential co-investors, lenders, or financing partners involved in evaluating or funding a transaction (with your consent)
Regulatory authorities, where required by law or legal process (for example, we may be required to report certain information to taxation or securities authorities)
We may also share your information with your other professional advisors to whom you consent to such sharing.
We do not sell, lease, barter, or otherwise deal with your personal information with third parties for commercial purposes.
Ako Capital may be involved in the sale, transfer, or reorganization of some or all of its business or the acquisition of investment businesses at some time in the future. As part of that sale, transfer, reorganization, or acquisition, Ako Capital may disclose your personal information to the organization involved, but will require that organization to agree to protect the privacy of your personal information in a manner that is consistent with this Privacy Policy.
How Do We Obtain Your Consent to the Collection, Use, and Disclosure of Your Personal Information?
By submitting personal information to Ako Capital through our website, lead generation forms, or other channels, and by continuing to engage with us regarding potential transactions or services, you are consenting to the collection, use, and disclosure of your personal information for the purposes identified in this Privacy Policy.
Ako Capital will not, as a condition of the supply of advice, services, or products, require you to consent to the collection, use, or disclosure of your personal information beyond that required to fulfill those purposes.
For sensitive information or purposes beyond the immediate evaluation of a transaction, we will seek your express consent (e.g., through a checkbox on a form or explicit written agreement).
Can You Withdraw Your Consent?
You may withdraw all or part of your consent for us to collect, use, or disclose your personal information, subject to legal restrictions and reasonable notice. Ako Capital will inform you of the implications of such withdrawal of consent for the continued provision of advice, services, or transaction evaluation.
To withdraw consent, please contact us, and note that withdrawal of consent may limit our ability to evaluate a potential transaction or provide certain services.
How Do We Safeguard Personal Information?
We carefully safeguard your personal information and, to that end, restrict access to personal information about you to those employees and other persons who need to know the information to enable us to provide services to you. Ako Capital's employees are responsible for ensuring the confidentiality of all personal information they may access.
Each of Ako Capital's employees is required to acknowledge and adhere to Ako Capital's policies and procedures, including this Privacy Policy and Principles, as a condition of their employment.
We implement technical, physical, and organizational safeguards appropriate to the sensitivity of the information, including:
Role-based access controls
Encryption of data in transit and at rest
Secure data centers and cloud infrastructure
Regular security training for employees
Vendor management and contractual privacy obligations;Breach detection and response procedures.
What Are Your Rights?
You have the right to ask whether we hold any personal information about you and to see that information, as provided by law. If you believe any of the information we have collected about you is incorrect or incomplete, you have the right to ask us to change it, and we will make the necessary changes.
Specifically, you have the following rights under PIPEDA:
Right to Access: Request a copy of the personal information we hold about you
Right to Correction: Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information
Right to Withdraw Consent: Withdraw consent for certain uses or disclosures (subject to legal restrictions)
Right to Deletion: Request deletion of your information where it is no longer necessary or where consent has been withdrawn
Right to Lodge a Complaint: File a complaint with our Privacy Officer or the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.If you feel we have not dealt with your request to your satisfaction, you can follow our complaint resolution procedures outlined below.
How to Obtain More Information or Register a Complaint?
You may register a privacy related complaint by contacting Ako Capital's Privacy Officer:
By Email: akolade@akocapital.ca
Attention: Privacy Officer
We are committed to resolving any privacy-related complaints promptly and fairly.
Ako Capital's Privacy Principles
Principle 1 – Accountability
Each employee of Ako Capital is responsible for personal information under his or her control and is accountable for the prudent and proper use of this information. Ako Capital has designated a Privacy Officer who is accountable for our compliance in accordance with our Privacy Policy and Principles.
Principle 2 – Identifying Purposes
The purposes for which personal information is collected shall be discussed with you before or at the time the information is collected. We identify these purposes in this policy and in our communications with you.
Principle 3 – Consent
The knowledge and consent of our clients, business owners, and partners is required for the collection, use, or disclosure of personal information, except for legal or security reasons. We obtain consent through form submissions, written agreements, or explicit acknowledgment.
Principle 4 – Limiting Collection
Only such information as is necessary for Ako Capital's services will be collected from you. Personal information shall be collected by fair and lawful means. We do not collect excessive or irrelevant information.
Principle 5 – Limiting Use, Disclosure, and Retention
Personal information will not be used, disclosed, or retained for purposes other than those for which the information was collected, except with the consent of the individual, or as permitted or required by law. We retain information only for as long as necessary to fulfill identified purposes or meet legal requirements.
Principle 6 – Accuracy
Personal information shall be as accurate, complete, and current as is necessary for the identified purposes for which it is to be used. We encourage you to inform us of any changes to your contact or business information.
Principle 7 – Safeguarding Information
Personal information will be protected by safeguards appropriate to the sensitivity of the information. We implement technical, physical, and organizational measures to prevent unauthorized access, disclosure, or misuse.
Principle 8 – Openness
Ako Capital will be open about its policies and procedures with respect to the management of personal information. We ensure that individuals are able to acquire information about Ako Capital's policies and procedures without unreasonable effort. This policy is available in plain language on our website and upon request.
Principle 9 – Individual Access
Upon written request, an individual will be informed of the existence, use, and disclosure of his or her personal information and shall be given access to it, except where the law requires Ako Capital to deny access. An individual will be able to challenge the accuracy and completeness of the information and have it amended as appropriate.
Principle 10 – Handling Customer Complaints and Suggestions
Individuals can address any complaint regarding compliance with the above principles with our Privacy Officer. We will investigate all complaints and respond within 30 days. If a complaint is substantiated, we will take appropriate corrective measures.
Updates to This Policy
This Privacy Policy may be updated from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal requirements, or other factors. The "Effective Date" at the top of this policy indicates the most recent revision. We encourage you to review this policy periodically to stay informed about how we protect your information.
Material changes to this policy will be communicated to you via email or prominent notice on our website prior to the changes taking effect.
Effective Date: September 9, 2026
Last Updated: September 9, 2026