Privacy Policy

The short version

Spendes is a personal & social money tracker built for India. We collect the information you give us (your phone number, name, and the expenses, splits, budgets and goals you create) so the app can work.

We never move your money and we never see or store your UPI PIN or bank login. When you settle up, the payment happens entirely inside your own UPI app. We don’t sell your data, and we don’t upload your address book.

1. Overview

This Privacy Policy explains what information Spendes (“Spendes”, “we”, “us”, or “our”) collects when you use the Spendes mobile app and related services (together, the “Service”), how we use it, who we share it with, and the choices and rights you have.

By creating an account or using the Service, you agree to this Policy. If you do not agree, please don’t use Spendes. This Policy should be read together with our Terms of Service.

2. Who we are

The Service is operated by Spendes [legal entity name], based in India. For privacy questions, or to exercise your rights, contact us at privacy@spendes.app. For anything else, reach support@spendes.app.

For the purposes of India’s Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (DPDP Act), Spendes is the “Data Fiduciary” that decides how and why your personal data is processed.

3. Information we collect

a. Information you give us

Category	Examples	Why
Account & identity	Mobile number (with country code), and a one-time password (OTP) to verify it	To create and secure your account and sign you in
Profile	Your name, optional email, optional profile photo, optional UPI ID (VPA), preferred currency	To personalise the app and pre-fill UPI payee details when you settle up
Financial entries	Expenses, income, merchants, notes, categories, budgets, EMIs & recurring payments, savings goals, investments (name, platform, amounts), groups, splits, settlements and balances you record	This is the product — to track your money and your splits with others
People you add	The name and phone number of friends or group members you choose to add (see Contacts)	To create the friendship/group and track who owes whom
Support & communications	Messages you send us, and feedback	To help you and improve the Service

b. Information we collect automatically

Device & app data — device type, operating system and version, and the Spendes app version, used for compatibility and troubleshooting.
Push token — if you enable notifications, a push notification token from your device and platform (iOS/Android), so we can deliver alerts about your splits, settlements and reminders.
Log & usage data — basic technical logs (such as timestamps and error information) needed to operate, secure and debug the Service.

4. Contacts — how it actually works

Spendes can help you add friends and group members from your phone’s contacts. We’ve designed this to be privacy-respecting:

We ask for contacts permission only when you open the “Add friends” / group screens, and only after you allow it.
Your contacts are read on your device to show you a searchable list. We do not upload your address book to our servers.
Only when you tap to add a specific person do we send that one person’s name and phone number to our servers — to create the friend or group member and link balances.
If you text an invite, your normal SMS app sends it; we don’t send messages on your behalf in the background.

Because Spendes lets you add other people, the information you share may include another person’s phone number. Please only add people you know, and make sure you’re comfortable sharing their number with us for this purpose.

5. What we don’t collect

Your UPI PIN, bank login, OTPs for payments, card numbers or CVV — never. These stay inside your own bank/UPI app.
Your full contact list / address book — we never upload it (see above).
Your precise location — the app doesn’t request or track GPS location.
Bank account statements or transaction feeds — Spendes only knows what you choose to enter.

6. How we use your information

We use your information to:

Provide the Service — track your spending, run the split/settle-up math, and show balances, budgets, goals and insights;
Verify your phone number and keep your account secure;
Pre-fill UPI payee details so you can settle up in your own UPI app;
Send you notifications you’ve enabled (split activity, settlements, reminders);
Provide customer support and respond to your requests;
Maintain, secure, debug and improve the Service, and prevent fraud and abuse;
Comply with applicable law.

We process this data because it’s necessary to provide a service you asked for, with your consent (which you can withdraw), and to meet our legal obligations. We do not sell your personal data, and we don’t use it for third-party advertising.

7. Payments & UPI

Spendes is not a bank, payment system, or payment processor, and we never hold, move, or settle your money. “Settle up via UPI” simply opens your chosen UPI app (such as Google Pay, PhonePe, Paytm, BHIM or CRED) with the payee’s UPI ID and the amount pre-filled. You authorise and complete the payment inside that app, under your bank’s and that app’s own terms and privacy policies.

When you mark a balance as settled in Spendes, you’re creating a record for your own reference — it isn’t proof that money actually changed hands.

We share information only as needed to run the Service:

With people in your splits. When you split an expense or settle up, the relevant members of that group or friendship can see your display name and the shared expense/settlement details and balances. That’s how splitting works.
With service providers (sub-processors) who help us operate the app under confidentiality obligations — for example cloud hosting and database providers, and push-notification delivery (Expo and the platform push services, including Google Firebase Cloud Messaging on Android and Apple Push Notification service on iOS). They may process data only on our instructions.
For legal reasons — if required by law, regulation, legal process, or a valid government request, or to protect the rights, safety and security of our users, the public, or Spendes.
In a business transfer — if Spendes is involved in a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, your information may be transferred, with notice and continued protection under this Policy.

We do not sell your personal data to anyone.

9. Data retention

We keep your information for as long as your account is active and as needed to provide the Service. If you delete your account, we delete or anonymise your personal data within a reasonable period, except where we must keep certain records to comply with legal obligations, resolve disputes, or enforce our agreements. Note that data shared within a group (for example a split you created) may remain visible to other members as part of their own records.

10. How we protect your information

We use reasonable technical and organisational safeguards to protect your data, including encryption in transit (HTTPS) and storing your authentication tokens in your device’s secure keychain/keystore rather than in plain app storage. No method of transmission or storage is 100% secure, but we work to protect your information and to limit access to it. If we become aware of a personal-data breach that affects you, we’ll notify you and the relevant authorities as required by law.

11. Your rights & choices

Subject to applicable law (including the DPDP Act), you can:

Access & review the personal data we hold about you;
Correct or update your information — you can edit your profile in the app, or contact us;
Delete your account and personal data (see below);
Withdraw consent — for example, revoke contacts or notification permission in your device settings at any time (some features may then stop working);
Nominate another individual to exercise your rights in the event of death or incapacity, as provided under the DPDP Act;
Raise a grievance with us (see Contact).

To exercise any of these, email privacy@spendes.app from your registered details. We may need to verify your identity before acting on a request.

12. Deleting your account & data

You can request deletion of your Spendes account and associated personal data at any time:

In the app — open Profile → Privacy & security → Delete account and follow the steps (where available in your app version); or
By email — write to privacy@spendes.app from your registered mobile number/email with the subject “Delete my account”.

Once verified, we’ll delete or anonymise your personal data within a reasonable timeframe, subject to the limited legal-retention exceptions in section 9. Some content you contributed to shared groups may persist in other members’ records.

13. Children

Spendes is intended for users 18 years and older and is not directed at children. We do not knowingly collect personal data from anyone under 18 without verifiable parental or guardian consent as required by law. If you believe a minor has provided us personal data, contact us and we’ll take appropriate steps to remove it.

14. Changes to this Policy

We may update this Policy from time to time. When we make material changes, we’ll update the “Last updated” date above and, where appropriate, notify you in the app or by other means. Your continued use of the Service after an update means you accept the revised Policy.

15. Contact & grievances

Questions, requests, or complaints about your privacy? We’re here to help.

Privacy & data requests: privacy@spendes.app
General support: support@spendes.app
Grievance Officer (India): [Grievance Officer name], grievance@spendes.app

We aim to acknowledge grievances promptly and resolve them within the timelines required under applicable law.