ZEC Market development update: optional non-custodial escrow is live
Hello everyone,
A lot has changed since our announcement, so here is a proper update on what we have shipped in the run-up to launch. The headline is that ZEC Market now has an optional 2-of-3 escrow, and it is fully non-custodial: the platform never holds a key and can never move anyone’s funds.
Everything below is in addition to what was already live (listings, search, storefronts, reviews, on-site messaging, Q&A, favorites, moderation). Direct wallet-to-wallet trades are unchanged and stay commission-free.
Optional 2-of-3 escrow, with no custody
For higher-value trades, a buyer can now choose escrow at checkout and pick a mediator. Instead of paying the seller directly, the payment goes into a shared 2-of-3 vault that the buyer, the seller and the chosen mediator each hold one key to.
What makes it different from most escrow:
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The vault is created in the browser. When a trade starts, the buyer, seller and mediator each run a distributed key generation (DKG) in their own browser. Each participant ends up with one share of the vault key. No single party, and not the platform, ever holds enough to spend.
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The coordinator is keyless. Our server watches the vault for the deposit and helps relay the public parts of a signature, but it holds no key share and can never sign. The sensitive parts of the DKG are sealed end to end, so even our relay never sees them.
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Two of the three keys move the money. A normal release is co-signed by the buyer and the seller. Nobody can pull the funds alone.
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It settles in one shielded transaction. The seller is paid, the mediator receives their fee, and the platform fee is taken, all in a single shielded Zcash transaction.
We have run full escrow trades on Zcash mainnet, end to end: automatic in-browser vault creation, a real shielded deposit, a two-party release, and a full refund, all with real transactions on-chain. Money is never at risk during signing; nothing is broadcast unless a valid 2-of-3 signature is produced.
Mediators
Escrow is only as good as the people who can settle a dispute, so we have added a mediators directory. Mediators are independent, community-recognized names, not staff, and only an admin can add one.
- Each mediator sets their own flat fee, from 0.01 to 0.04 ZEC per escrow trade.
- The mediator fee is split evenly between the buyer and the seller, so neither side carries it alone.
- Mediators are listed with their rating, cases resolved and the fee they charge, so buyers can choose who they trust.
Dispute resolution
If a trade goes wrong, either side can open a dispute. The mediator reviews it and decides the honest outcome, then co-signs it with the party they ruled for: release to the seller, or a refund to the buyer. Because it is 2-of-3, the mediator alone can never move the funds, and neither can one party alone. A mediator can step in on a real dispute, or after a funded trade has sat untouched for three days.
Refunds are non-custodial the same way: the whole deposit sweeps back to the buyer, with no fees taken, once two of the three keys sign.
Fees
We want to keep the incentives honest and simple:
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Direct trades stay 0%. No commission, no cut, free to list.
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Escrow trades carry a flat $5 platform fee (converted to ZEC at the time of the trade), plus the mediator’s own fee described above. The fee only applies when you choose escrow, and it is shown up front before you deposit.
Listings: shipping and delivery
Sellers can now describe fulfillment properly. A listing can be shipped, local pickup, or digital delivery, and for shipped items the seller sets where it ships to, the domestic and international shipping cost in ZEC, and a delivery time. Buyers see all of this on the listing before they buy.
Other improvements
- A full password reset flow (forgot password and reset).
- Fixes to the escrow walkthrough, the mediator directory, profile links after a username change, and avatars.
- Various polish across the trade screens.
Launch sponsors
We are grateful to have a small group of launch sponsors supporting the project: Noir Wallet, Cake Wallet, 0xRamp, OpenZcash and live.zec.
What is next
We are continuing to test and polish ahead of launch, with a focus on the escrow flows and the mobile experience. If you want to try escrow, kick the tires on the vault creation, or tell us where the flow can be clearer, we would love the feedback in this thread.
Thank you for the support so far. We are building this in the open for the Zcash ecosystem, and community input is shaping it directly.
