Terms of use

Plain-language version 2026-11-10. Written by MM and waiting for review by a lawyer; if a lawyer changes anything, the new version gets a new date and only applies to deals opened after it.

These are the rules for using MM. Every deal records which version of these rules both sides accepted.

What MM is

MM is an escrow service. A buyer and a seller agree on a deal, the buyer's money is held in the middle, and MM releases it when the deal says it should: to the seller when the delivery is done, back to the buyer when it isn't. MM is built by Escrow MCP and run by Persist Ventures. MM is software, not a bank or a licensed escrow agent, and nothing MM says is legal, tax or financial advice.

Who can use it

• Adults who can make a binding agreement where they live, and businesses acting through such a person.
• AI agents acting for a person or a business. The person or business behind the agent is responsible for every deal the agent opens, accepts or funds.
• Nobody who is on a sanctions list, or living in a country under broad sanctions, and no deal that would break sanctions law.

The deal

• Both sides accept the same written terms before any money moves. Changing the terms after that needs both sides to accept the change.
• The terms say what is delivered, by when, and how delivery is checked. Where it can, MM checks delivery itself (a domain transfer, a code repository, an on-chain transfer, a web page or a file). Otherwise the buyer confirms.
• After delivery the buyer has an inspection window. If the buyer doesn't raise a problem before it ends, the money goes to the seller.
• If the seller misses the delivery deadline, the buyer is refunded, along with any bond the seller put up.
• MM is the middle, not a party to your deal. What is sold, whether it is as described, and whether either side may legally sell or buy it is between the buyer and the seller.

Disputes

If the buyer raises a problem, both sides add their evidence and a panel of AI models from different companies decides how the held money is split. MM uses the middle answer of the panel. Either side can appeal once, to a larger panel. MM then pays out the held money as the final ruling says. By using MM, both sides agree that this is how MM pays out the money it holds. It does not take away any other rights either side has against the other.

Fees

• USDC deals: 1% of the price.
• Card and bank deals: 3.5% of the price plus $4 per deal, which covers what the card networks and banks charge.
• The deal says who pays the fee: the buyer, the seller, or half each. The quote shows the exact amounts before anyone pays.
• MM is only paid when money is released. If a deal is refunded in full, MM charges no fee. On a split ruling the fee is split in the same proportion.

Your private link

Each side gets a private link to the deal. Anyone who has your link can act for you on that deal, so keep it like a password. If you lose it, write to support@escrowmcp.org; we may ask you to prove who you are before helping.

Paying with USDC

• The money sits in a public escrow contract on the Base network, not in an account MM owns. MM can only pay the seller named in the deal or send the money back to the buyer. How your money is protected explains this in full.
• Blockchain transfers can't be reversed. Check addresses before you sign. You are responsible for your wallet and its keys; MM never sees them.
• Every USDC deal has a date after which the buyer can take back anything still in escrow without MM.

Paying by card or bank

• Card and bank payments are processed by Stripe. MM holds the money in its Stripe account until the deal says to pay it out.
• To be paid, the seller sets up a Stripe payout account and accepts Stripe's own terms. Stripe may ask either side to prove who they are.
• If the buyer disputes a card payment with their bank, MM sends the bank the deal's record, and the money follows the bank's decision.

What you can't do on MM

No deal may break the law where either side is, and some kinds of deal are never allowed. See what you can't sell here. MM may refuse, pause or cancel a deal that breaks these rules, and refund the buyer.

Records

Every step of every deal is written to a history that can't be quietly edited: each entry carries a fingerprint of the one before it. Either side can download it from the deal page. See the privacy page for what MM keeps and who sees it.

Limits on what MM is responsible for

• MM is responsible for following these rules with the money it holds. It is not responsible for the goods or services, for what either side says about them, or for losses caused by a lost private link, a lost wallet, or a network or bank outside MM's control.
• MM may have bugs, and the networks and payment companies it uses may fail. MM is offered as it is. Where the law allows, MM's responsibility for any one deal is limited to the fee MM charged on that deal.

Changes and contact

When these terms change, the new version gets a new date. A deal stays under the version both sides accepted. Questions: support@escrowmcp.org.