Privacy Policy

The First Tick (thefirsttick.com) — published by GMBSTS Holdings, LLC

Effective date: June 15, 2026 | Last updated: June 18, 2026

The First Tick (“we,” “us,” “our”) is a daily pre-market financial newsletter published by GMBSTS Holdings, LLC. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect when you visit thefirsttick.com or subscribe to our newsletter, how we use it, and the choices you have. We have designed the service to collect as little personal information as possible.

1. Summary

In plain terms: the only personal information you actively give us is your email address, which you provide to subscribe. We do not run advertising or analytics trackers, we do not set tracking cookies, and we do not sell or rent your information. The sections below provide the detail.

2. Information we collect

2.1 Information you provide

• Email address. When you subscribe, we collect the email address you submit. This is the only information our subscribe form collects.
• Correspondence. If you email us (including via the contact, corrections, or watchlist-request links on the site), we receive the contents of your message and your email address.

2.2 Information collected automatically

• IP address (transient, for abuse prevention). When you submit the subscribe form, our server temporarily reads your IP address solely to rate-limit submissions (to prevent spam and abuse). This value is held in temporary server memory, is not stored in any database, and is discarded automatically.
• Server and hosting logs. Our hosting provider (Vercel) automatically logs standard technical request data — such as IP address, browser/user-agent, and the page requested — as part of operating the website. This is standard server logging and is subject to the hosting provider’s retention practices.
• Incidental logging. In the event of a failed or duplicate subscription attempt, our system may record diagnostic error information that can include the email address submitted, within our hosting provider’s temporary function logs. We do not use this information for any purpose other than diagnosing errors. We do not use Google Analytics, Vercel Analytics, Plausible, advertising pixels, tag managers, or any third-party analytics or tracking tools on the website. No analytics package is installed; Vercel Web Analytics and Speed Insights are not enabled.

3. Cookies and similar technologies

The website does not set tracking cookies and does not use localStorage or similar technologies to track you. Fonts are self-hosted and served from our own domain, so visiting the site does not cause your browser to contact third-party font services.

4. How we use information

• To send you the newsletter you subscribed to, and related subscription messages (such as confirmation emails).
• To respond to your correspondence.
• To operate, secure, and prevent abuse of the website (including the rate-limiting described above). We do not use your information for advertising, and we do not sell, rent, or share your personal information with third parties for their own marketing.

5. Email delivery and engagement

We use Buttondown to store subscriber email addresses and to send our newsletter. When you subscribe, your email address is transmitted to and stored by Buttondown on our behalf. Buttondown processes your information in accordance with its own privacy practices.

When you receive our newsletter emails, we may use tracking technologies such as pixels and tagged links (including UTM parameters) to measure whether an email was opened and which links in it were clicked. We use this information in aggregate to understand engagement and improve the publication, and it is processed by Buttondown on our behalf. You can limit this by disabling image loading in your email client or by unsubscribing at any time.

6. Service providers (processors)

We rely on the following third parties to operate the service. Each processes information only as needed to provide its service to us:

• Vercel — website hosting and serverless execution; processes request/hosting logs (including IP addresses) and, transiently, diagnostic logs.
• Buttondown — newsletter subscriber storage and email delivery; stores your email address and manages subscription/confirmation.
• Google Workspace (Google LLC) — hosts the mike@thefirsttick.com inbox and receives/stores email correspondence you send us.

7. How we share information

We do not sell or rent your personal information. We share information only: (a) with the service providers listed above, to operate the service; (b) if required by law, legal process, or to protect rights, safety, and security; and (c) in connection with a business transfer (such as a merger or acquisition), in which case we will require the recipient to honor this Policy.

8. Data retention

We retain your email address for as long as you remain subscribed. If you unsubscribe, your address is removed from active mailing in accordance with our and Buttondown’s processes. Correspondence may be retained as long as reasonably necessary to address your request and for ordinary record-keeping. Transient data (such as the rate-limiting IP value) is not retained. Hosting logs are retained per the hosting provider’s schedule.

9. Your choices and rights

• Unsubscribe. Every newsletter email contains an unsubscribe link; you may opt out at any time.
• Access, correction, deletion. You may request access to, correction of, or deletion of your email address by contacting us at mike@thefirsttick.com. Depending on where you live (for example, California or the EU/UK), you may have additional rights regarding your personal information. To exercise any right, contact mike@thefirsttick.com.

10. Security

We take reasonable measures to protect the limited information we hold and rely on reputable providers (Vercel, Buttondown) for storage and transmission. However, no method of transmission or storage is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

11. Children

The service is intended for adults and is not directed to children under 13 (or the equivalent minimum age in your jurisdiction). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us information, contact us and we will delete it.

12. International users

The service is operated from the United States. If you access it from outside the United States, you understand your information will be processed in the United States, where data-protection laws may differ from those in your location.

13. Changes to this Policy

We may update this Policy from time to time. We will revise the “Last updated” date above and, where appropriate, provide additional notice. Continued use of the service after changes become effective constitutes acceptance of the revised Policy.

14. Contact

Questions or privacy requests: mike@thefirsttick.com, or via the contact page at thefirsttick.com/contact. 418 Broadway Ste. R, Albany, NY 12207.