Transaction Veritas Certification Agreement

1. Parties and certification scope

This Certification Agreement is entered into between Transaction Veritas, as the certification body and programme owner, and the applicant organization identified in the applicable order form, proposal, or application record. The Agreement governs evaluation under one or more Transaction Veritas certification standards, including IncubatorTrust and AcceleratorTrust, together with any approved scope notes, conditions, or limitations.

1. The certification scope will identify the legal entity, programme, business unit, geography, or operating boundary being assessed.
2. No certification extends by implication to affiliates, portfolio companies, founders, mentors, or third parties unless expressly stated in writing by Transaction Veritas.
3. Any change in legal entity, programme ownership, governance, scope, or material operating model must be disclosed promptly to Transaction Veritas.

2. Assessment services

Transaction Veritas will conduct the assessment using its published methodology, which may include scoping, self-assessment review, policy review, interviews, process walkthroughs, document validation, sample testing, remediation review, and certification decisioning.

1. Transaction Veritas may request documents, records, data exports, screenshots, logs, interview access, and clarifications reasonably necessary to assess conformity.
2. Transaction Veritas may rely on a combination of documentary evidence, live system evidence, oral explanations, and sample testing in forming its conclusions.
3. Transaction Veritas may narrow, pause, or defer an assessment where evidence is incomplete, contradictory, unreliable, or materially delayed.
4. Any timeline stated by Transaction Veritas is an estimate dependent on cooperation, evidence quality, and the closure of identified gaps.

3. Applicant obligations

The applicant must provide accurate, timely, and complete information and must not knowingly omit material facts relevant to the certification decision.

1. The applicant will designate a certification owner and a primary contact.
2. The applicant will maintain the policies, procedures, and records necessary to support the requested certification scope.
3. The applicant will notify Transaction Veritas of material incidents, regulatory actions, confirmed misconduct, control failures, data breaches, major founder complaints, or public controversies reasonably relevant to the certification.
4. The applicant will cooperate with remediation review, surveillance, and recertification activities during the certification term.
5. The applicant will not misrepresent its certification level, scope, or status in any communication.

4. Certification decision, level, and public listing

Certification decisions are made solely by Transaction Veritas using the applicable standard, scoring model, critical-control thresholds, and any documented remediation conditions.

1. Transaction Veritas may issue any of the following outcomes: pass, pass with conditions, deferred pending remediation, or not certified.
2. Where certification is awarded, Transaction Veritas will determine the level, scope, effective date, and next review or expiry date.
3. Transaction Veritas may publish a public verification page stating the certified entity name, certification type, certification level, certification ID, active status, award date, next review date, and scope notes.
4. The applicant has no right to alter or expand the public description of certification beyond the wording approved by Transaction Veritas.

5. Surveillance, renewal, and recertification

Certification remains subject to continued conformity during the active award period.

1. Transaction Veritas may conduct periodic surveillance, which may include evidence refreshes, interviews, targeted sample review, incident review, or control retesting.
2. The applicant must participate in surveillance in good faith and provide refreshed evidence when requested.
3. Certification renewal or recertification is not automatic and requires a new decision by Transaction Veritas.
4. Failure to complete required surveillance or recertification activities may lead to suspension, lapse, or withdrawal of certification.

6. Suspension, withdrawal, and termination

Transaction Veritas may suspend, narrow, withdraw, or terminate certification rights where continued reliance on the certification would be misleading or unsupported.

1. Grounds may include material misrepresentation, refusal to cooperate, failure to remediate critical gaps, non-payment, misuse of the badge, lapsed surveillance, or material breakdown in certified controls.
2. During suspension, the applicant must stop representing itself as actively certified unless Transaction Veritas expressly permits limited wording.
3. Upon withdrawal, expiry, or termination, the applicant must remove certification claims and badge assets from websites, decks, proposals, social media, email signatures, and other public materials within the period stated by Transaction Veritas.
4. Termination of this Agreement does not limit Transaction Veritas from publishing accurate status information about expired, suspended, or withdrawn certifications.

7. Fees and payment

Fees, taxes, travel charges, and payment milestones will be set out in the applicable proposal, order form, or invoice schedule.

1. Certification fees are payable regardless of outcome unless Transaction Veritas states otherwise in writing.
2. Remediation reassessment, additional scope review, or materially expanded evidence review may be charged separately.
3. Late or unpaid amounts may result in paused assessment work, suspended certification, or termination of badge rights.

8. Confidentiality and data handling

Transaction Veritas will treat non-public applicant information as confidential except to the extent disclosure is required for assessment delivery, internal governance, professional advisers, dispute resolution, legal process, or public status verification.

1. Transaction Veritas may use applicant materials to assess conformity, maintain certification records, defend decisions, improve certification operations, and support surveillance.
2. The applicant remains responsible for securing any third-party consents or permissions needed to share personal data, founder information, or confidential records with Transaction Veritas.
3. Public verification pages and published badge status are not confidential.

9. Disclaimer, limitation of liability, and no regulatory endorsement

Certification is a private assessment opinion issued under the Transaction Veritas standard. It is not a regulatory approval, legal opinion, investment endorsement, or guarantee of future conduct.

1. Transaction Veritas does not warrant that certified organizations will remain compliant, lawful, profitable, secure, or free from complaints or incidents.
2. To the maximum extent permitted by law, Transaction Veritas will not be liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary, or reputational damages.
3. To the maximum extent permitted by law, aggregate liability arising from this Agreement will not exceed the fees paid by the applicant to Transaction Veritas for the relevant certification engagement in the twelve months preceding the claim.

10. General terms

1. This Agreement, together with the applicable order form, standard, and Badge License, forms the complete agreement concerning certification.
2. Transaction Veritas may update its standards, assessment methods, and badge rules prospectively. Material changes will apply on renewal, recertification, or earlier where necessary to preserve programme integrity.
3. If any provision is held unenforceable, the remainder will continue in effect.
4. No waiver is effective unless in writing.
5. The governing law and dispute venue should be specified in the commercial order form or master services agreement used for the engagement.