Trading Step by Step

This guide covers the complete trade lifecycle — from placing a trade to completion, including timers, cancellation, payment timeouts, and everything in between.

Understanding the Trade Lifecycle

Every trade goes through a series of states in a simplified auto-acceptance flow:

Payment Pending → Payment Confirmed → Completed
       ↓                ↓                ↓
  Cancelled        Cancelled        Disputed → Dispute Resolved
       ↓
  Auto-Expired (if payment timeout)

Key Change: Trades are automatically accepted when placed. There is no longer a "Pending" state waiting for seller acceptance. Funds are immediately locked in escrow and the payment timer starts.

The trade detail page shows a visual progress tracker at the top so you always know where the trade stands.

Finding Your Trades

1. Go to Dashboard > Trades.
2. You see a list of all trades you are involved in (as buyer or seller).
3. Use the search bar to find trades by ID, asset, currency, or status.
4. Toggle the filter panel to narrow results by:

• Status — Active, Completed, Cancelled, Disputed
• Trade Type — Buy or Sell
• Payment Method — Filter by specific method

5. Active filters appear as dismissible badges above the results.
6. A results count shows "Showing X of Y trades".
7. Click any trade row to open its detail page.

Trading as a Buyer

Step 1 — Place a Trade

1. Go to Marketplace.
2. Find a Sell offer that matches what you want to buy.
3. Click Buy on the offer card.
4. Complete the 2-step Place Trade dialog:

• Enter your amount (within min/max limits)
• Select a payment method
• Review fees and terms
• Confirm the trade

5. Trade is auto-accepted immediately and you are redirected to the trade detail page.

Important: You must have a verified email address to place trades. See Settings & Profile guide for email verification.

Step 2 — Send Payment (Payment Pending)

No waiting for acceptance! The trade starts in Payment Pending status immediately:

1. The seller's payment details appear on the trade page under "Seller Payment Information".
2. Payment details vary by method:

• Bank Transfer — Bank name, account number, account holder name
• Mobile Money (MonCash, NatCash, M-Pesa, etc.) — Phone number, account holder name
• Digital Wallet (PayPal, Venmo, etc.) — Email or username
• Cash — Meeting location, contact information

3. Payment timer starts counting down (typically 15 minutes, set by offer creator).
4. Send the payment outside the platform using the provided details.
5. You must complete payment before the timer expires or face progressive penalties (see Payment Timeouts below).

Timer Warning Colors:
- Blue — Plenty of time remaining
- Orange — Less than 5 minutes left — urgent
- Red — Timer has expired

Step 3 — Upload Payment Proof

1. On the trade detail page, click Mark Payment as Sent.
2. Choose how to provide proof:

• Upload Image — Drag and drop or click to upload a screenshot of your payment receipt (JPEG, PNG, WebP, GIF — max 10MB). Images are automatically optimized.
• Enter URL — Paste a link to your receipt image or enter a transaction reference ID.

3. Optionally add notes about the payment.
4. Click Submit Payment Proof.

The status changes to Payment Confirmed and the release timer starts for the seller.

Step 4 — Wait for Confirmation

The seller verifies that your payment was received. Once they confirm, the trade completes automatically. You will see a confetti animation and a success banner.

Tip: Use the trade chat to communicate with the seller if there are any questions about the payment.

Trading as a Seller

Step 1 — Receive a Trade

When someone places a trade on your offer:

• It appears immediately in Dashboard > Trades with Payment Pending status
• Funds are auto-locked in escrow
• Payment timer starts immediately
• You may receive an email notification (if enabled)

No acceptance step needed — the trade is ready for the buyer to pay.

Step 2 — Wait for Payment

The buyer sees your saved payment details (configured when you created the offer) and sends payment. The payment timer counts down.

You can:

• Extend the payment timer if the buyer needs more time (see Extending Timers)
• Cancel the trade if needed (2% fee applies - see Cancelling a Trade)
• Chat with the buyer for updates

Step 3 — Review Payment Proof

When the buyer marks payment as sent:

1. Status changes to Payment Confirmed
2. Release timer starts (typically 30 minutes, set when you created the offer)
3. Payment proof appears on the trade detail page
4. Click the image to view full size

Step 4 — Verify and Confirm

1. Check your bank/wallet/phone to verify the payment was actually received.
2. Review the buyer's payment proof on the trade detail page.
3. If payment received, click Confirm Payment Received.
4. The trade completes with a confetti animation.
5. Crypto is released from escrow to the buyer.

Warning: Only confirm payment after you have verified the funds are actually in your account. Once confirmed, the trade cannot be reversed.

Important: You must confirm before the release timer expires or the buyer can open an appeal.

Payment Timers

Trades have two timers that enforce deadlines to keep trades moving quickly and prevent time-wasters.

Payment Timer

• Starts: Immediately when trade is placed (auto-accepted)
• Who: Buyer must send payment and upload proof before this expires
• Default: 15 minutes (configurable by offer creator: 15, 30, 60, or custom minutes)
• Displayed: Compact banner with countdown at top of trade page
• What happens if expired: See Payment Timeouts below

Release Timer

• Starts: When buyer marks payment as sent (status becomes Payment Confirmed)
• Who: Seller must confirm payment receipt before this expires
• Default: 30 minutes (configurable by offer creator: 15, 30, 60, or custom minutes)
• Displayed: Compact banner with countdown at top of trade page
• What happens if expired: Buyer can open a dispute/appeal

Timer Colors

Auto-refresh: Timers update every 15 seconds so both parties always see the current countdown.

Extending Timers

Either party can extend the timer to give the other party more time, up to a maximum of 7 days total from trade creation.

Payment Timer Extension (Seller Extends for Buyer)

The seller can extend the payment timer if the buyer needs more time to pay.

Extension Options:

• 15 minutes
• 30 minutes
• 1 hour (60 minutes)
• 1 day (24 hours / 1440 minutes)
• 3 days (72 hours / 4320 minutes)
• 5 days (120 hours / 7200 minutes)

How to extend:

1. Click the "Extend Timer" dropdown next to the payment timer banner
2. Select your desired extension time
3. Confirm the extension

Limits:

• Maximum total time from trade creation to deadline: 7 days
• If adding the extension would exceed 7 days, you'll see an error with the maximum allowed extension
• Extensions are tracked (counter shows how many times extended)

Release Timer Extension (Buyer Extends for Seller)

The buyer can extend the release timer if the seller needs more time to confirm payment.

• Same extension options and limits as payment timer
• Same 7-day maximum total time limit

System Messages

When a timer is extended, both parties receive a system message in the trade chat showing:

• Who extended the timer
• How much time was added
• New deadline timestamp

Payment Timeouts

If a buyer fails to send payment before the payment timer expires, the system automatically applies progressive penalties to discourage repeat offenders.

What Happens

When the payment deadline is reached and payment hasn't been marked as sent:

1. Trade is auto-cancelled (status becomes "cancelled", autoExpired: true)
2. Timeout fee is charged (progressive based on offense count)
3. 50% of fee goes to seller as compensation for their time
4. Trading ban is applied (progressive duration)
5. Email notifications sent to both parties

Progressive Penalty System

Penalties increase with each timeout offense:

How Fees Are Charged

If buyer has sufficient USD balance:

• Fee is deducted automatically from buyer's wallet
• Seller receives their 50% share immediately
• Transaction appears in both wallet histories

If buyer has insufficient balance:

• Debt is created for the full amount
• Buyer cannot place new trades until debt is paid
• No money is transferred to seller until debt is paid
• See Wallet guide for paying debt

Trading Bans

While banned, buyers CANNOT:

• ❌ Place new trades
• ❌ Accept trade offers
• ❌ Initiate any buy transactions

While banned, buyers CAN:

• ✅ View existing trades
• ✅ Complete ongoing trades (if any)
• ✅ Chat with trade partners
• ✅ Deposit funds to wallet
• ✅ Pay outstanding debts
• ✅ Submit appeals (with $4.99 fee)

Ban expiration is shown in error messages and dashboard alerts.

Preventing Timeouts

As a buyer:

• Only place trades when you're ready to pay immediately
• Have payment method ready before clicking "Buy"
• If you need more time, ask the seller to extend the timer via chat
• Set calendar reminders for active trades

As a seller:

• Set reasonable payment time limits (15-30 minutes typical)
• Be available to extend timer if buyer has legitimate delays
• Monitor trades and communicate proactively

Appeals

If a timeout occurred due to:

• ✅ Payment was made but not confirmed
• ✅ Technical issues prevented payment upload
• ✅ Seller provided wrong payment information
• ✅ Extenuating circumstances (emergency, etc.)

You can submit an appeal with a $4.99 fee (refunded if approved). See Disputes & Appeals guide for the complete appeal process.

Learn More: See Payment Timeout System for complete documentation including analytics, debt tracking, and admin tools.

Cancelling a Trade

Either party can cancel a trade during certain states, but fees apply to discourage abuse.

When Can You Cancel?

• ✅ During Payment Pending — Both buyer and seller can cancel
• ✅ During Payment Confirmed — Only buyer can cancel (seller cannot, since buyer may have already sent money)
• ❌ Not available after completing, or if already disputed
• ❌ Not available after timer has expired — use an appeal instead

Cancellation Fees

Buyer Example:

• Trade amount: 0.5 BTC worth $15,000 USD
• Buyer cancels
• Buyer charged: $3.99 USD (flat fee)
• Seller receives: $1.995 USD (compensation)
• Platform receives: $1.995 USD

Seller Example:

• Trade amount: 0.5 BTC
• Seller cancels
• Cancellation fee: 0.01 BTC (2% of 0.5 BTC)
• Seller gets refund: 0.49 BTC (0.5 - 0.01 fee)
• Platform receives: 0.01 BTC

How to Cancel

1. On the trade detail page, click Cancel Trade button.
2. Read the fee information displayed.
3. Enter a cancellation reason (required).
4. Click Yes, Cancel Trade to confirm.
5. Fee is charged and escrow funds are refunded (minus seller's fee if applicable).

What Happens After Cancellation

1. Trade status changes to "Cancelled"
2. Cancellation fee is charged immediately
3. Escrow funds are unlocked and refunded (minus fee for seller)
4. System message posted to trade chat
5. Email notification sent to the other party
6. Timeline event added showing who cancelled and why

Viewing Trade Details

The trade detail page organizes information into collapsible accordion sections:

Trade Details

• Trade status and escrow status
• Asset being traded
• Amount and price per unit
• Currency and payment method
• Total trade value
• Payment timer (if in Payment Pending status)
• Release timer (if in Payment Confirmed status)

Buyer / Seller Information

• Buyer name and email (with "You" badge if you are the buyer)
• Seller name and email (with "You" badge if you are the seller)
• Block / Unblock buttons for the other party

Seller Payment Information

• The payment details the seller provided (rendered based on payment type)
• Field types vary: phone numbers, bank accounts, emails, physical locations
• Copy buttons for easy copying

Payment Proof

• Image preview (clickable to view full size) if proof was uploaded
• Text reference if a URL or transaction ID was provided
• "Payment proof hasn't been submitted yet" if no proof exists

Trade Timeline

• Complete event history with timestamps
• Every state change, action, and event is recorded
• Timer extensions, fee charges, and ban applications logged

Trade Chat

• Real-time messaging with the other party
• See the Trade Chat guide for full details

Tip: Click the section headers to expand or collapse them.

Email Verification Requirement

To protect the platform from abuse and ensure account security, you must verify your email address before you can:

• ❌ Place trades (buy from marketplace)
• ❌ Create trade offers (sell on marketplace)

How to Verify Your Email

1. Go to Dashboard > Settings > Security tab
2. Click Send Code button
3. Check your email for a 6-digit verification code (expires in 10 minutes)
4. Enter the code in the verification field
5. Click Verify
6. Email verified ✅ — you can now trade!

Email verification ensures:

• Account ownership confirmation
• Ability to recover your account
• Receive important notifications (timeout alerts, trade updates, etc.)
• Required for enabling two-factor authentication (2FA)

See the Settings & Profile guide for more details on email verification and security features.

Viewer Mode

If you are a team admin, owner, or viewer monitoring a trade you are not directly part of, you see the trade in read-only mode:

• All action buttons are disabled
• Chat is read-only (you can see messages but not send)
• You can view all trade details but cannot take any actions
• Useful for customer support, compliance, and team oversight

Quick Reference

Trade States

Action Buttons by Role

Related Guides

• Marketplace Guide — Finding and filtering offers
• Creating Offers Guide — Setting up your sell offers
• Payments Guide — Payment methods and verification
• Disputes & Appeals Guide — Handling problems and appeals
• Wallet Guide — Managing funds and paying debts
• Trade Chat Guide — Communicating with trade partners
• Payment Timeout System — Complete progressive penalty documentation

Last Updated: February 2026

Version: 2.0.0 — Auto-Acceptance & Progressive Penalties

Updated on: 24/02/2026