Privacy Policy

Bend is a self-custodial money app. This policy explains what information we handle, why, and what we never touch. The short version: we hold as little as possible, we never sell your data, and your money is controlled by keys only you hold.

What we collect

• Account basics. Your email address (used to sign in), your @username, an optional display photo, and an optional phone number if you add one.
• Wallet addresses. The public addresses of the self-custodial wallets created for your account. Public addresses are not secrets — they're how people send you money.
• Transaction records. A mirror of your on-chain activity (amounts, counterparties, optional notes you attach) so your feed loads instantly. The blockchain itself remains the source of truth and is public by design.
• Social graph. Friends you add, requests you send and receive, and accounts you block.
• Devices & notifications. A record of the devices signed in to your account (you can see it under Security → Active devices) and, if you turn on notifications, your device's push token so Apple can deliver them.
• Approximate region. To check whether region-limited features are available to you, the app asks a geolocation service to turn your IP address into a country code. We never request GPS location — the app has no location permission.

What we never have

• Your private keys. Wallets are created and secured by our authentication partner (Privy) so that only you can authorize spending. Bend cannot move, freeze, or lose your money.
• Your Face ID or biometrics. Face ID checks happen entirely on your device through Apple's APIs. Biometric data never leaves your phone.
• Bank logins or card numbers (until such features launch, at which point they will be handled by regulated partners, not stored by Bend).

Device permissions

• Camera / photo library — only when you choose to set a profile photo. Photos you pick are compressed and stored as your avatar; we can't browse your library.
• Face ID — to confirm payments locally on your device.
• Notifications — optional, and only if you turn them on.

Who we share with (service providers)

We use a small set of infrastructure providers, each receiving only what their function requires:

• Privy (a Stripe company) — sign-in, one-time code emails, and self-custodial wallet infrastructure. They process your email address.
• Supabase — hosts our application database and avatar storage (the account basics and transaction mirror above).
• Circle — powers cross-chain USDC transfers (CCTP). They see the public on-chain transactions involved.
• Public blockchain RPCs (such as Helius) — read and relay public blockchain data.
• Chainalysis — sanctions screening. Public wallet addresses are checked against sanctions data (see below).
• A geolocation service — turns your IP address into a country code for the region check above; the result is kept on your device.

We do not sell your personal information. We do not run ads. We do not share your data with data brokers.

Sanctions screening

To comply with U.S. sanctions law, wallet addresses are screened against the U.S. Treasury's SDN list when they're created and on a recurring basis. Screening uses our own copy of the Treasury's published list plus Chainalysis's screening service; only public wallet addresses are shared for this. Accounts linked to sanctioned addresses may be restricted.

The blockchain is public

Payments on Bend settle on public blockchains. Anyone can see transactions between wallet addresses, though those addresses are not labeled with your name by us. Deleting your Bend account removes our records, but on-chain history is permanent by the nature of blockchains.

Data retention & deletion

You can delete your account in the app under Security → Delete account. That removes your profile (email, username, photo, phone, social graph) from our systems. Your wallet remains yours — you can export your recovery key before deleting and keep full access to your funds without Bend.

Security

All traffic is encrypted in transit. Spending requires authorization from your device — our servers cannot initiate transactions. Keys are secured in hardware-backed enclaves managed by Privy.

Children

Bend is not directed at children under 13 (or the applicable minimum age in your region), and we don't knowingly collect their data.

Changes

If this policy changes materially, we'll notify you in the app before the change takes effect.

Contact

Questions? Email support@bend.cash.