Publisher, not advisor

The hardest constraint in the business model. Cortana is a data and software product. Not an advisor. Not a broker. Not a fund. This distinction is everything.

The hard rule

Never register with FINRA or the SEC. Full stop. This is a hard constraint, not a preference. Every product decision flows from it.

Practical implications

• Product positioned as information, research, or software - consistent with how NautilusTrader and similar vendors operate.
• No managed accounts.
• No pooled investment vehicles.
• No performance-based fees.
• No individualized advice.
• Marketing language avoids prediction claims and recommendation language. The signals are signals, not instructions.
• Before the service goes live, a securities attorney reviews the structure, terms of service, and marketing language.

Why this is not a limitation

It is the shape of the business. The line between publisher and advisor is real, and staying on the right side of it is not optional. Building with it in mind from day one is what makes the service viable at all.

Reference models

• NautilusTrader
• zTradez

Both sell signals and tooling, not advice.

See Also

• projects/cortana.md
• concepts/hub-and-spoke-signal-engine.md - the hub API is the product boundary where this constraint is enforced