Understanding Smart Escrows
High-level architecture: Smart contracts, APIs, and escrow workflows.
Trustless Work enables programmable, non-custodial escrows tailored to any workflow. This section merges conceptual understanding with practical design tools, helping you move from theory to implementation.
🔎 What is a Smart Escrow?
A Smart Escrow is a blockchain-based smart contract that holds funds until specific conditions are met. It is trustless, programmable, and transparent by design.
📅 Set Up: Define roles, amounts, and milestone logic
💳 Fund: Lock stablecoins (USDC, XLM) on-chain
✅ Execute: Release funds only when verified conditions are met
Trustless Work escrows are:
🔒 Non-Custodial
🚀 Fast & Low-Cost (on Stellar/Soroban)
⚖️ Transparent & Programmable
Learn more in the Escrow Lifecycle Guide.
🔌 Why Not Use Traditional Escrow?
Feature
Traditional Escrow
Trustless Work
Speed
Days to weeks
Instant
Fees
5–8%
0.3% – 0.5%
Custody
Centralized
Trustless
Transparency
Low
High
Global Reach
Region-Limited
Borderless
Integration Flexibility
Rigid
Fully flexible
How It All Works Together 🏗️
🧠 Key Roles in an Escrow
Roles define who can take actions at each phase.
Role
Responsibility
Milestone Marker
Marks deliverables as done
Approver
Approves or disputes deliverables
Release Signer
Signs final release transaction
Receiver
Receives funds
Dispute Resolver
(Optional) Resolves disputes
Platform Address
(Optional) Collects platform fees
🛠️ Escrow Lifecycle Overview
Trustless Work escrows follow a clear, auditable sequence:
Initiation → 2. Funding → 3. Milestone Update → 4. Approval → 5. Release → 6. (Optional) Dispute Resolution
View the full Escrow Lifecycle Deep Dive.
🧱 Use Case Examples
Freelance Marketplace
DAO Grant Program
⬇️ Next Steps
💬 Smart Escrows let you codify trust into your workflows. Start by designing your ideal transaction flow—and let Trustless Work handle the rest.
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