Terms & Conditions of Service

In these Terms and Conditions ("Terms"), unless context otherwise requires, the following terms shall bear the definitions assigned herein:

• "RAStage" / "Company" / "Platform" / "We" / "Us": Refers to Techthaastu, its founders, successors, assigns, and the software product accessible via https://rastage.techthaastu.com/, its APIs, subdomains, and official mobile applications.
• "Research Analyst (RA)": An individual or corporate entity holding a valid, subsisting Certificate of Registration granted by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) under SEBI (Research Analysts) Regulations, 2014, who subscribes to RAStage to manage their practice.
• "End-Client" / "Subscriber" / "Investor": Any individual, Hindu Undivided Family (HUF), or corporate entity that registers on the RA’s white-label portal or mobile app to receive research reports, recommendations, or advisory services.
• "Recommendation" / "Research Call": Any equity, derivative (F&O), commodity, or currency trade suggestion, entry/exit level, stop-loss, target, rationale, or research note authored by the RA and transmitted via RAStage.
• "Broadcast Engine": RAStage's proprietary multi-channel delivery pipeline facilitating real-time delivery via official WhatsApp Business API, Telegram Channels/Bots, Telecom DLT-registered SMS gateways, email, and mobile push notifications.
• "Razorpay Integration": Payment aggregation infrastructure provided by Razorpay Software Pvt. Ltd., enabling RAs to collect subscription fees directly into their verified merchant bank accounts.
• "SEBI Audit Vault": The tamper-evident, timestamped record-keeping and archiving system integrated within RAStage to facilitate statutory compliance under Regulation 24 & 25 of SEBI (Research Analysts) Regulations, 2014.

2.1 Technology Intermediary Status: RAStage qualifies as an "Intermediary" under Section 2(1)(w) of the Information Technology Act, 2000 (as amended), providing web-based software, mobile application code, cloud hosting, and data transmission pipelines. RAStage does not initiate transmission, select recipients, or modify data contained in transmissions published by Research Analysts.

2.2 No Advisory or Fiduciary Relationship: No partnership, joint venture, employment, brokerage, or fiduciary relationship is created between RAStage and any Research Analyst or End-Client. RAStage has no financial stake in the outcome of any market trades or recommendations executed by subscribers.

2.3 Independent Contractorship: Research Analysts using RAStage operate as entirely independent business entities. Each RA is solely accountable for their regulatory filings, compliance audits, investor grievance handling, tax obligations, and research methodologies.

Any individual or firm registering on RAStage as a Research Analyst must satisfy the following strict eligibility prerequisites:

1. Active SEBI Registration: The RA must hold an active SEBI Registration Number (format: INH...) and maintain compliance with SEBI (Research Analysts) Regulations, 2014, and amendments notified by SEBI and RAASB.
2. Mandatory Disclosures: In accordance with SEBI circulars, RAs must display their registered legal name, SEBI registration number, registered trade address, and contact details prominently on their webmaster portal and in every published research report.
3. Prohibition of Guaranteed Returns: The RA covenants that they shall not publish, broadcast, market, or advertise any promises of assured, risk-free, or guaranteed returns. SEBI explicitly prohibits performance claims without statutory disclaimers.
4. Conflict of Interest Disclosures: The RA must utilize the disclosure flags within RAStage's Recommendation Studio to disclose whether the analyst or their associates hold any financial interest in the recommended scrips or have received compensation from the subject company.
5. Immediate Notification of Regulatory Action: If SEBI, RAASB, or any court suspends, cancels, or initiates show-cause proceedings against the RA's license, the RA must notify RAStage within 24 hours. RAStage reserves the right to immediately suspend broadcast privileges upon learning of regulatory enforcement.

End-clients accessing research recommendations via the web portal or mobile app agree to the following terms:

• Personal, Non-Commercial License: All recommendations, alerts, and market insights dispatched to your account are for your sole, individual consumption. You are strictly prohibited from forwarding, screenshotting, syndicating, reselling, or sharing research calls in public or private Telegram channels, WhatsApp groups, or social forums.
• Independent Investment Decision: You acknowledge that securities trading involves significant capital risk, including the risk of partial or total loss. Past performance figures showcased by an RA do not guarantee future profitability. You are advised to assess your personal financial situation and risk profile before acting on any trade recommendation.
• Account Credentials Security: You are solely responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your mobile OTPs, passwords, and multi-factor authentication tokens. Any action executed through your verified login shall be deemed authorized by you.

RAStage equips Research Analysts with a proprietary Recommendation Studio to draft, review, validate, and broadcast trade recommendations. The platform enforces the following operational framework:

RAStage enables simultaneous sub-second broadcast dispatch across multiple third-party conduits:

• Official WhatsApp Business API: Dispatches pre-approved transactional and advisory templates in compliance with Meta's Business Messaging Policies.
• Telegram Channels & Private Bots: Dispatches real-time markdown notifications to subscribers verified by phone number or bot handshake.
• Telecom DLT SMS Gateways: Dispatches time-critical trade alerts with registered Sender IDs (DLT headers) in compliance with TRAI regulations.
• Email Dispatchers: Dispatches comprehensive research reports, morning market wraps, and regulatory disclosures.

7.1 Client CRM & Investor Lifecycle: RAStage provides RAs with a centralized CRM to monitor subscriber tenures, active packages, renewal dates, and communications histories. All client onboarding documents, risk questionnaires, and KYC logs must be collected and reviewed in compliance with applicable anti-money laundering (AML) and SEBI mandates.

7.2 Mobile Application (Android & iOS): RAStage provides white-label and platform-branded mobile applications. End-clients can download the app to receive push notifications, review historical performance cards, and inspect published research reports.

7.3 Client Data Exclusivity: RAStage covenants that your client database is confidential. RAStage DOES NOT sell, rent, broker, or market to your clients. Your client relationships and investor data remain your exclusive business property.

RAStage integrates with Razorpay Software Private Limited ("Razorpay") to power smooth digital checkouts, 1-click renewals, UPI QR codes, debit/credit cards, and netbanking:

8.1 Direct Merchant Settlement: Research Analysts must complete KYC verification with Razorpay. RAStage does not pool, touch, or hold investor subscription funds. Payments flow directly to the RA's verified merchant bank account in compliance with RBI Payment Aggregator (PA) guidelines.

8.2 Automated GST Invoicing: RAStage automatically generates GST-compliant digital tax invoices for every successful transaction, detailing GSTIN, SAC codes, and breakdown of CGST, SGST, or IGST.

9.1 RAStage B2B Platform Subscriptions (For RAs):

• Free Trial: Research Analysts may evaluate RAStage during the designated trial period (e.g., 14 days) without obligation.
• Paid SaaS Plans: Once a paid subscription is activated, fees paid for the ongoing billing cycle are non-refundable, as cloud infrastructure, API limits, and dedicated server resources are provisioned immediately upon upgrade.
• Cancellation: An RA may cancel renewal at any time through the console. Service shall remain active until the end of the paid billing cycle.

9.2 End-Client Subscriptions (For Investors):

• Digital Nature of Research: Research recommendations, market reports, and trade signals constitute instant digital intellectual property consumed immediately upon dispatch.
• Refund Discretion: The refund policy for research advisory services is determined solely by the respective Research Analyst and clearly stated on their service checkout page. Because advice is delivered in real-time, services are generally non-refundable unless specified otherwise in the RA's written client agreement.
• Chargebacks & Disputes: Clients encountering billing discrepancies must first contact the RA’s support or RAStage’s grievance desk before initiating payment disputes with card networks or UPI aggregators.

Under Regulation 24 & 25 of the SEBI (Research Analysts) Regulations, 2014, a Research Analyst is legally required to preserve all research reports, rationales, published recommendations, delivery logs, and investor interaction records for a minimum period of 5 (five) years.

To ensure audit-readiness during regulatory inspections by SEBI or RAASB:

• Every recommendation dispatched via RAStage is immutably recorded with UTC and IST timestamps, publishing user ID, and recipient list snapshots.
• Delivery reports from WhatsApp, Telegram, and SMS gateways are archived to prove exact dispatch times.
• RAs can generate formatted, tamper-evident PDF and Excel inspection binders with one click directly from the console.
• In the event an RA terminates their account, RAStage provides an export archive utility to enable the RA to discharge their 5-year statutory record preservation obligation.

11.1 RAStage IP: All rights, title, and interest in and to the RAStage platform, software code, UI designs, system architectures, trademarks, logos, and documentation belong exclusively to Techthaastu. Users are granted a limited, revocable, non-exclusive, non-transferable license to access the platform.

11.2 Research Content IP: The Research Analyst retains full copyright and intellectual property rights in their authored research reports, proprietary analysis models, market commentary, and firm branding. RAStage claims no ownership over your intellectual property.

11.3 Reverse Engineering Prohibited: You shall not decompile, reverse engineer, scrape, extract source code, or attempt to circumvent security controls of RAStage.

12.1 "As Is" Warranty Disclaimer: RAStage is provided on an "AS IS" and "AS AVAILABLE" basis. Techthaastu disclaims all representations and warranties, whether express, implied, or statutory, including warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement.

12.2 No Liability for Financial Losses: Under no circumstances shall RAStage, Techthaastu, its directors, employees, or affiliates be liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, punitive, or consequential damages, including but not limited to:

• Trading or capital losses incurred by investors following an RA’s recommendation.
• Loss of profits, business interruptions, or regulatory penalties imposed on the RA.
• Slippage caused by third-party telecom, WhatsApp, or SMS network delays.
• Downtime resulting from cloud infrastructure events (AWS), cyber incidents, or force majeure events.

12.3 Aggregate Liability Cap: In any event, the maximum aggregate liability of RAStage to an RA for any and all claims arising under these Terms shall not exceed the total SaaS fees actually paid by the RA to RAStage in the three (3) months preceding the incident.

RAStage reserves the right to immediately suspend or terminate an account, with or without prior notice, under any of the following circumstances:

1. SEBI, police, or judicial direction mandating suspension of the analyst’s operational privileges.
2. Breach of statutory compliance, such as advertising guaranteed returns or operating without active SEBI registration.
3. Engagement in fraudulent, abusive, or spam messaging activities violating Meta or TRAI regulations.
4. Non-payment of SaaS subscription fees following grace period notices.

14.1 Governing Law: These Terms shall be governed by, interpreted, and construed exclusively in accordance with the substantive laws of India, without regard to conflict of law principles.

14.2 Dispute Resolution: Any dispute, controversy, or claim arising out of or relating to these Terms shall first be attempted to be resolved amicably through mutual discussions within thirty (30) days. Failing amicable resolution, the dispute shall be referred to arbitration in accordance with the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, by a sole arbitrator mutually appointed by the parties.

14.3 Grievance Redressal Mechanism: In compliance with Rule 3(2) of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, and applicable SEBI guidelines, details of the Grievance Redressal Officer are as follows: