Particular	Details
Policy Name	Fair Practices Code
Version	3.0
Effective Date	04 June 2026
Policy Owner	Compliance Team
Approved By	Board of Directors
Board Approval Date	4th June, 2026
Review Frequency	Once every three years, or earlier if required by law, RBI directions, business requirements, or Board directions
CIN	U71309TN1995PLC030475

1. Introduction

With a view to ensuring transparency, fairness, and customer-friendly practices in lending, the Reserve Bank of India has prescribed broad guidelines on fair practices to be framed by Non-Banking Financial Companies with the approval of their Board of Directors and implemented across their operations.

In accordance with applicable RBI directions, Celestium Financial Ltd. (“Company”) has, with the approval of its Board of Directors, adopted the following Fair Practices Code (“Code”) for its business loan operations.

The Company is registered with the Reserve Bank of India as a Non-Banking Financial Company and does not accept public deposits.

This Code applies to business loans and related services offered by the Company to borrowers, co-borrowers, guarantors, applicants, and other relevant parties.

2. Applications for Loans and Their Processing

• a) The loan application form shall include necessary information that affects the interest of the borrower, so that the borrower can make an informed decision and compare the terms and conditions offered by other lenders.
• b) The list of documents required to be submitted with the loan application shall be specified in the application form or otherwise communicated to the applicant.
• c) The Company shall acknowledge receipt of all loan applications. The acknowledgement shall indicate the time frame within which the loan application is expected to be disposed of.
• d) Complete loan applications are generally processed within 7 to 10 working days from receipt of all required documents and information, subject to verification, credit appraisal, and completion of due diligence.
• e) If a loan application is rejected, the Company shall communicate the rejection to the applicant promptly and shall provide reasons for rejection, where feasible and subject to applicable law, confidentiality, fraud-risk considerations, and internal policies.
• f) All communications to the borrower shall be in English or in a language understood by the borrower. Where required, the material terms may be explained to the borrower in a language understood by the borrower.

3. Loan Appraisal and Terms / Conditions

• a) The Company shall convey in writing to the borrower, by means of a sanction letter or otherwise, the amount of loan sanctioned along with the terms and conditions, including the annualised rate of interest and method of application thereof.
• b) The Company shall keep the acceptance of the terms and conditions by the borrower on its record.
• c) The sanction letter, loan agreement, Key Fact Statement, repayment schedule, and other transaction documents, as applicable, shall set out the material terms of the loan, including loan amount, tenure, repayment frequency, interest rate, charges, late payment charges, prepayment charges, security requirements, guarantee requirements, and other applicable conditions.
• d) The Company shall mention penalties or charges for late repayment in bold in the loan agreement, wherever applicable.
• e) The Company shall furnish a copy of the loan agreement, along with a copy of each enclosure quoted in the loan agreement, to the borrower at the time of sanction or disbursement of the loan.

4. Key Fact Statement

• a) Where applicable, the Company shall provide a Key Fact Statement (“KFS”) to prospective borrowers to help them take an informed view before executing the loan contract.
• b) The KFS shall be written in a language understood by the borrower. The contents of the KFS shall be explained to the borrower and an acknowledgement shall be obtained.
• c) The KFS shall include, wherever applicable, the annual percentage rate, repayment schedule, charges payable to the Company, third-party charges recovered through the Company, and other prescribed information.
• d) Any fees or charges not mentioned in the KFS shall not be charged to the borrower during the term of the loan without explicit consent of the borrower, where such disclosure or consent is required under applicable RBI directions.
• e) The KFS shall be included as a summary box forming part of the loan agreement, where applicable.

5. Disbursement of Loans Including Changes in Terms and Conditions

• a) The Company shall give notice to the borrower of any change in the terms and conditions, including disbursement schedule, interest rates, service charges, prepayment charges, repayment schedule, and other material terms.
• b) The Company shall ensure that changes in interest rates and charges are effected only prospectively. A suitable clause to this effect shall be incorporated in the loan agreement.
• c) Any decision to recall or accelerate payment or performance under the loan agreement shall be in consonance with the loan agreement.
• d) The Company shall release all securities on repayment of all dues or on realisation of the outstanding amount of loan, subject to any legitimate right or lien for any other claim the Company may have against the borrower.
• e) If such right of set-off or lien is exercised, the borrower shall be given notice with full particulars of the remaining claims and the conditions under which the Company is entitled to retain the securities until the relevant claim is settled or paid.

6. Interest Rate and Charges

• a) The Company shall ensure that it does not charge excessive interest rates to its borrowers.
• b) The Board of Directors shall adopt an interest rate model taking into account relevant factors such as cost of funds, margin, risk premium, borrower profile, collateral or security, structure of the loan, and other relevant factors.
• c) The rate of interest and approach for gradation of risk shall be disclosed to the borrower in the application form and communicated explicitly in the sanction letter.
• d) The rate of interest shall be annualised so that the borrower is aware of the exact rate charged to the loan account.
• e) Applicable interest, charges, late payment charges, prepayment charges, and other fees shall be disclosed in the sanction letter, loan agreement, KFS, or other applicable loan documents.
• f) Prepayment charges, if any, shall be levied only in accordance with applicable RBI directions and shall be clearly disclosed in the sanction letter, loan agreement, and KFS, where applicable.

7. Penal Charges / Late Payment Charges

• a) The Company may levy late payment charges, bounce charges, penal charges, or other charges for delayed repayment, failed repayment, or non-compliance with material terms of the loan, as disclosed in the applicable loan documents.
• b) Penalty, if charged for non-compliance with material terms and conditions of the loan contract, shall be treated as penal charges and shall not be levied in the form of penal interest added to the rate of interest charged on the loan.
• c) There shall be no capitalisation of penal charges, and no further interest shall be computed on such charges, except as permitted under applicable law and RBI directions.
• d) Penal charges shall be reasonable and commensurate with the non-compliance of material terms and conditions of the loan contract, without being discriminatory within a particular loan or product category.
• e) The Company shall have a Board-approved policy on penal charges or similar charges on loans, by whatever name called.
• f) The intent of levying penal charges shall be to inculcate credit discipline and not to use such charges as a revenue enhancement tool.

8. General

• a) The Company shall refrain from interference in the affairs of the borrower except for the purposes provided in the terms and conditions of the loan agreement, unless new information not earlier disclosed by the borrower has come to the notice of the Company.
• b) In case of receipt of request from the borrower for transfer of borrowal account, the consent or otherwise, i.e. the Company’s objection, if any, shall be conveyed within 21 days from the date of receipt of the request. Such transfer shall be as per transparent contractual terms in consonance with law.
• c) The Company shall not discriminate against applicants on the ground of disability in extending products and facilities, including loan facilities. The Company shall render reasonable assistance to physically or visually challenged applicants for availing business loan facilities.
• d) The Company shall ensure that grievances of persons with disabilities are redressed under the grievance redressal mechanism.
• e) The Company shall include suitable training or awareness for its employees on fair treatment of customers, including the rights of persons with disabilities, as applicable.

9. Recovery of Loans

• a) In the matter of recovery of loans, the Company shall not resort to undue harassment, including persistently bothering borrowers at odd hours, use of muscle power, intimidation, harassment, threats, abusive language, public humiliation, anonymous calls, misleading representations, or any unlawful recovery method.
• b) The Company and its agents shall not make threatening or anonymous calls, send inappropriate messages, intrude upon the privacy of the borrower’s family members, referees, or friends, or make false and misleading representations.
• c) The Company and its agents shall not persistently call the borrower or call the borrower before 8:00 a.m. or after 7:00 p.m. for recovery of overdue loans.
• d) The Company shall ensure that its staff and collection personnel are adequately trained to deal with borrowers in an appropriate manner.
• e) Where recovery agents are engaged, the Company shall ensure due diligence, appropriate authorisation, training, and adherence to the Company’s code of conduct and applicable RBI directions.
• f) Recovery agents shall carry identity cards and appropriate authorisation while interacting with borrowers.
• g) The Company shall provide the details of recovery agents to the borrower while initiating the recovery process, where applicable.
• h) The Company shall host up-to-date details of recovery agencies engaged by it on its website, where applicable.

10. Direct Sales Agents / Direct Marketing Agents / Recovery Agents

• a) The Company shall ensure that Direct Sales Agents, Direct Marketing Agents, Recovery Agents, and other authorised representatives, where engaged, are properly trained to handle their responsibilities with care and sensitivity.
• b) Such agents shall be trained on matters including customer solicitation, hours of calling, privacy of customer information, and conveying correct terms and conditions of the products offered.
• c) The Company shall obtain an undertaking from such agents to abide by the applicable code of conduct.
• d) Agents shall observe strict customer confidentiality and shall refrain from any action that could damage the integrity or reputation of the Company.

11. Grievance Redressal Mechanism

• a) The Company shall maintain an appropriate grievance redressal mechanism to resolve disputes arising out of loans and advances.
• b) The grievance redressal mechanism shall ensure that disputes arising out of decisions of the Company’s functionaries are heard and disposed of at least at the next higher level.
• c) The Company shall endeavour to resolve customer grievances within 7 to 10 working days from receipt of the complaint, subject to receipt of all required information and documents.
• d) The Compliance Team shall monitor implementation of this Code and coordinate with relevant departments for compliance.
• e) The Board of Directors shall periodically review compliance with the Fair Practices Code and functioning of the grievance redressal mechanism at various levels of management.
• f) A consolidated report of such reviews shall be submitted to the Board at regular intervals.

12. Grievance Redressal Officer and Escalation

For customer complaints, customers may contact:

Customer Complaints:
Mahesh, Operations Team
Phone: 080 23515156

For escalation, customers may contact:

Grievance Redressal Officer / Escalation:
Mr. S. Babu
Operations Head
Mobile: 9840306818
Phone: 044-45094446
Email: operationschennai@celestium.in

If the complaint or dispute is not redressed within one month, the customer may escalate the complaint under the applicable Reserve Bank of India grievance redressal / Ombudsman framework, as may be applicable.

The details of the Grievance Redressal Officer and escalation mechanism shall be displayed at the Head Office, branches, and on the Company’s website.

13. Display and Publication

• a) This Fair Practices Code shall be put up on the Company’s website for the information of customers and stakeholders.
• b) The Code shall also be displayed or made available at the Head Office and branches of the Company.
• c) The Code shall be made available in English and, where required, explained to borrowers in a language understood by them.

14. Review and Amendments

• a) This Code shall be reviewed once every three years, or earlier if required due to changes in law, RBI directions, business requirements, internal policies, or Board directions.
• b) Any amendment to this Code shall be approved by the Board of Directors or such authority as may be authorised by the Board.
• c) In case of any conflict between this Code and applicable law or RBI directions, the applicable law or RBI directions shall prevail.
• d) Nothing in this Code shall limit any right, remedy, obligation, reporting requirement, regulatory requirement, or statutory duty available to or imposed on the Company under applicable law, RBI directions, loan documents, or orders of any court, tribunal, regulator, or statutory authority.