Payments and payouts — questions we get asked

Who holds the money in a marketplace?

Either the platform or the provider. The platform can collect payment through a gateway that splits it, or hold it in a wallet before paying providers out; or customers can pay providers directly while you collect a fee. Each choice changes the build, the regulation and your revenue. That is why it is the third question we ask before quoting.

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Which payment gateways do you work with?

We choose the gateway by country and by whether providers need payouts. We confirm what is available in your market during scope. A gateway is the service that takes the card or account payment. One that works well for a simple checkout may not support paying providers, or may not operate in the next market you plan to enter, so we check both.

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Can providers get paid automatically?

Yes, where the rail supports payouts. Where it does not, the console handles manual payout runs with a full record. A rail is the route money takes from one account to another. Either way, every payout is recorded against the jobs it covers, so when a provider asks where their money is, your team answers from the console, not a spreadsheet.

When do providers get paid?

When your payout rules say so, and you set those rules. They depend on three things: whether the rail supports scheduled payouts, whether you hold money until a job is confirmed, and how long you keep funds back in case of refunds. We write the rules down in phase one, because providers leave platforms that pay them late or unpredictably.

How do refunds and disputes work?

A refund policy is written in phase one and built as a flow, not handled by email. The flow decides who can ask for a refund, who approves it, whether the provider's payout is held, and what the record shows. FindWorker taught us this with our own money: we operate it, so every refund and dispute on it is ours to settle.

What is escrow in a marketplace?

Escrow means the platform holds the customer's payment until the work is done, then releases it to the provider. It protects customers from paying for a job that never happens, and providers from doing work that is never paid. FindWorker uses milestone payments, which work this way. Escrow brings dispute and compliance rules with it, so we scope it in phase one.

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Do you build wallets?

Yes, when the country's rails or the business model need one. A wallet adds compliance scope; we tell you before it is in the plan. A wallet lets customers or providers keep a balance inside the platform. Help24, a health marketplace in Côte d'Ivoire, has one. Holding balances can bring licensing rules in some markets, which is why it is decided in scope.

Can we take commission?

Yes. Percentage, fixed, or per category. Set in the console, not in code. That means you can change your commission when your market changes, without a developer or a new app release. Where the platform holds the money, commission comes off before the provider is paid, so your revenue never depends on chasing providers for it.

Can customers pay in cash?

Yes, if your market needs it, but it changes the build. With cash, the platform never holds the money, so commission has to be collected from providers afterwards and the console has to track what each one owes. Refunds and disputes are harder to settle too. We scope cash as its own flow, not as an extra option at checkout.

Do we need a licence to hold customers' money?

Sometimes. It depends on three things: the country, whether the platform holds balances, and how long it holds them. Using a regulated gateway to split payments can mean you never hold the money yourself. We flag the question in scope so you can take legal advice before the payment flow is built, not after. We are engineers, not lawyers, and we say so.