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Side Project: VouchPay - Escrow for P2P Marketplaces

Hey everyone,

Just launched https://vouchpay.app/ which is a secure online payment method for buyers and sellers on online marketplaces like Craigslist and Kijiji.

Why does this exist?

Buying and selling online sucks. As a buyer, I am one of many and unable to express how serious I am about the purchase. As a seller, I don't know which buyer to take seriously, so I normally go with first come first serve. Additionally, there are scams, and issues where I exchange information without trusting the other person. The two best solutions right now are Escrow.com and PayPal. Both solutions are very expensive, claims take forever to complete, and there is still no sense of security.

What if there was a way where I could identify the best buyers quickly, only share the information I wanted after a reservation was made, and manage claims faster in case things went wrong. That's where VouchPay comes in.

How does it work?

Suppose I am selling an iPhone for $500. Normally I would post on a bunch of marketplaces and get spammed for messages, without knowing who is a serious buyer. Instead, I ask serious buyers to put in an offer via VouchPay. Buyers sign up for VouchPay, connect a card, and are charged a hold for $500. The money never exchanges hands, until both the buyer and myself agree to the payment. If the buyer decides to decline, they can remove the hold on the card. As a seller, this helps me find out who is a serious buyer, and as a buyer, I get taken more seriously without losing money.

Future Iterations

  • Location based tracking, to see if people actually met up and exchanged goods

  • Split payments, if the seller is rated highly enough

  • Proper escrow, instead of a hold on the card

  • buy now pay later if the buyer proves to be trustworthy

Feedback

What do you think? Is this something you'd use or do you feel existing solutions are good enough?

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