Beta

Smart contracts without crypto

Write the deal as a small JSON rule document (milestones, deadlines, late penalties, refunds). Both parties consent to the exact terms hash; every event is ledger-recorded; one pure function computes who gets paid what. No tokens, no wallets, no AI in the grading.

What it is

A contract whose rules run themselves, without a blockchain token. The terms are JSON (spec rs-contract-rules/0.1). One party proposes, the other countersigns the exact SHA-256 of the terms, and from then on every submit, accept, reject or cancel is an append-only, signed entry on Rightshold's hash-chained ledger, which is anchored to Bitcoin through OpenTimestamps. The current state and the settlement (amount to release, late penalty, refund) come from one deterministic function: same terms, same events, same time, same answer.

Rules you can write

• Milestones with an amount (minor units) and a due time
• condition: counterparty_accepts (client accepts the submission) or evidence_submitted (a submission with an evidence hash completes it)
• late_penalty_bps_per_day and max_penalty_bps: a late completion releases the amount minus the penalty and refunds the penalty
• on_miss: refund (an unsubmitted milestone past its due time is refunded) or keep_open
• Cancel: both parties send cancel; unaccepted milestones are refunded
• expires_unsigned_at: the offer lapses if not countersigned in time

Replay it yourself

Anyone can check a contract: GET https://www.rightshold.com/v1/smart-contracts/{id}/replay returns the terms, every event and its ledger sequence number. POST the terms and events to https://www.rightshold.com/v1/smart-contracts/evaluate (free, no key) or run the open-source function, and you get the same state. Signatures check against https://www.rightshold.com/.well-known/rightshold-keys.json.

What it does not do

Record and compute only: Rightshold does not hold, move or release money. The settlement block says who should be paid what under the agreed rules; pay through your own card or credit rails and cite this contract. Free during the Beta. Rightshold still operates the ledger today; independent witnesses co-signing it is the next step, so this is verifiable, not operator-free.

Use it

• Spec and example: GET https://www.rightshold.com/v1/smart-contracts
• Propose (account key): POST https://www.rightshold.com/v1/smart-contracts with {terms, my_role: client | provider, counterparty_account_id}
• Countersign: POST https://www.rightshold.com/v1/smart-contracts/{id}/sign with {terms_sha256}
• Events: POST https://www.rightshold.com/v1/smart-contracts/{id}/events with {type: submit | accept | reject | cancel, milestone_id, evidence_sha256?, note?}
• State, free and signed: GET https://www.rightshold.com/v1/smart-contracts/{id}

Price

Free during the Beta. Any future price is announced at /transparency/changes with 7 days' notice before it applies.