Confidentiality

1. Why This Statement Exists

Corporate finance work runs on information a client would not give anyone else. Valuations, transaction terms, ownership disputes, funding gaps and exit intentions all reach us before they reach the market, and in most cases before they reach the client’s own wider organisation. PaceMakers Business Consultants LLP (“PMBC”, “we”, “our”) treats that as the defining obligation of the practice rather than as a clause in a contract.

This statement sets out how we handle information in practice. It is a description of our standing approach, not a substitute for the confidentiality provisions of an engagement letter or a separate non-disclosure agreement. Where an executed agreement says something different, that agreement governs.

2. Before an Engagement: Enquiries and Exploratory Discussions

Confidentiality begins at the first conversation, not at signature. Information shared while you are deciding whether to appoint us is treated as confidential whether or not an engagement follows, and whether or not a non-disclosure agreement is in place.

• We do not disclose that a prospective client has approached us, or what the subject matter was.
• Enquiry material is used only to assess the mandate, scope the work and prepare a proposal.
• If we do not proceed, or you appoint someone else, the position does not change. The obligation survives the decision not to engage.
• We will tell you where we think a discussion is approaching the point at which a formal non-disclosure agreement should be signed before it goes further. In most cases that is the point at which names, numbers or counterparties enter the conversation.

3. During an Engagement

Information received in the course of a mandate is used for that mandate and for nothing else. In particular:

• We do not use client information to inform work for another client, to build a view on a market we are advising in, or to seed our own research or published material.
• Anonymised or aggregated use of engagement experience, such as a case study or a sector reference, is published only with the client’s written consent. Where consent is given, the write-up is shown to the client before it appears.
• Deliverables are addressed to the client and are not circulated beyond the recipients named in the engagement letter without instruction.
• Where a mandate requires us to speak to third parties, such as lenders, valuers or counterparties, we agree in advance what may be disclosed and to whom.

4. Everyone Working on the Mandate Is Bound by the Same Obligations

PMBC is partner-led and resourced per engagement rather than through a permanent pyramid. Analysts and associates are brought onto a mandate for the work it needs. That model does not dilute the obligation:

• Every analyst and associate engaged on a mandate is bound by written confidentiality obligations to PMBC that are no less strict than the ones PMBC owes the client, and those obligations continue after their involvement ends.
• Access is given on a need-to-know basis within the engagement. Team members receive the material their part of the work requires and not the client’s file in full.
• The partner reviews the work personally and remains accountable for it, including for the handling of information by anyone engaged on it.
• We do not name individual analysts or associates externally, on this website or elsewhere, and we do not identify who worked on which mandate.
• Where a client requires named-individual confidentiality undertakings, or approval rights over who is staffed, we accommodate that in the engagement letter.

5. Storage and Access

Client material is held in access-controlled systems operated by PMBC or by established service providers under contract. In practice this means:

• Files are stored in accounts under firm control, not on personal storage belonging to individuals working on a mandate.
• Access is restricted to the people engaged on that mandate, and is withdrawn when their involvement ends.
• Material is transmitted over encrypted connections. Where a client specifies a secure transfer method or a data room, we work inside it.
• Enquiries submitted through this website are stored separately from engagement files, in the systems described in our privacy policy, and are visible only to authorised firm personnel.

No system is immune to compromise. We use safeguards consistent with professional practice and do not represent that any system is absolutely secure. If a breach affecting client information occurred, we would notify the affected client promptly and describe what happened.

6. After an Engagement Ends

Confidentiality does not expire with the engagement. Our obligations continue indefinitely in respect of information that remains confidential, and they are not affected by the conclusion, termination or non-renewal of a mandate.

• Working files and deliverables are retained for the period set out in the engagement letter, and otherwise for as long as is required by applicable professional, regulatory and tax obligations.
• Retained material stays under the same access restrictions as during the mandate.
• On written request we will return or destroy client material at the end of a retention period, subject to any copy we are required to keep by law or by professional standards, which remains confidential.
• Concluded mandates are not used as unattributed references. We do not describe a former client’s situation to a prospective one, even without naming them, where the description would make them identifiable.

7. Where Disclosure Is Required

There are limited circumstances in which we may be required to disclose information, and we treat these as exceptions to be applied narrowly rather than as general permission:

• Where disclosure is required by applicable law, by a court or tribunal of competent jurisdiction, or by a regulator or professional body entitled to demand it.
• Where required for anti-money laundering, counter-terrorist financing, sanctions or know-your-client obligations.
• Where necessary to establish, exercise or defend a legal claim, including a dispute between PMBC and the client.
• Where the client has consented to the disclosure, or has instructed it.

Where we are permitted to do so, we will tell the client before disclosing, give them the opportunity to seek protective relief, and disclose only the part of the information that is actually required. Some legal obligations prohibit us from giving notice, and in those cases we cannot.

8. Conflicts Between Prospective Clients

A boutique practice serving a defined set of sectors will be approached by parties with opposing interests. We manage that explicitly:

• We run a conflict check before accepting a mandate, against current and recent engagements.
• Where accepting a mandate would put us on both sides of the same transaction, or against a current client on a related matter, we decline. We do not treat information barriers as a substitute for declining in that situation.
• Where two prospective clients approach us on the same opportunity, neither is told that the other has. The fact of an approach is itself confidential, so a declined mandate is declined without explanation of the reason where explaining it would disclose the other approach.
• Advising separate clients in the same sector is not, by itself, a conflict. What is not permitted is any flow of information between those mandates, and the restrictions in section 3 apply in full.
• Where a potential conflict is manageable and both parties are entitled to know, we raise it in writing and proceed only with informed consent.

9. Financial Modeler Pro

Financial Modeler Pro is the platform arm of PMBC and operates as a separate product with its own systems and its own terms. Client information from an advisory mandate is never used to build, populate or illustrate platform content, and platform user data is not used in advisory work.

10. Questions and Contact

If you need a confidentiality undertaking in place before a conversation, or you have a question about how information you have already shared is being handled, write to the advisory address listed in the website footer and it will reach the partner directly. See also our privacy policy, which covers personal information collected through this website, and our terms of engagement.