Scrow FAQs
Frequently-asked questions about using Scrow.
Last updated
Frequently-asked questions about using Scrow.
Last updated
Two parties arrange in advance the type and amount of tokens they want to exchange with each other, and which chains they want to use. For example, Alice might have 1 million USDC on Polygon, while Bob has 3,000 ETH on Ethereum mainnet.
Alice uses the Scrow platform to create a dedicated smart contract for this escrow. She enters the amount, asset, and chain for each side of the deal. She can also decide whether Scrow’s fee is paid by one or other party, using either USDC or ETH (one of the assets to be exchanged), or whether both parties share the fee and pay in SCROW tokens.
The two users then each send the required assets to the smart contract address. Following these deposits (including the fee), a separate settlement transaction can be triggered by either of them to release the funds to each party.
Counterparties to a trade can discuss terms on any platform they like, including Scrow’s own Discord, where other traders can be found. Never agree to send assets directly to another user’s address without depositing them to a Scrow contract. Anyone who suggests this is likely to be a scammer.
When you have agreed terms (including tokens, amounts, chains, and each user’s blockchain address), one of you can create the escrow contract by entering this information into the Scrow platform. The link to the contract can then be shared with the other party. When the contract has been created, users can deposit funds to the escrow address. Once both parties have deposited the right number of tokens on the correct chains, and paid the required fee, it will be possible to execute settlement with a final transaction. This will release the tokens to each counterparty trustlessly.
You can use any application you like to arrange a trade. You will find a community of traders on the Scrow Discord if you are looking for a counterparty to a specific trade.
Because Scrow is a trustless DeFi platform, it is safe to deposit funds to the escrow contract even if the other party turns out to be unreliable. If the conditions of the deal are not met, it is not possible for the counterparty to access your funds. Nonetheless, to avoid inconvenience, it is best to establish, as far as possible, that the counterparty is offering a legitimate trade (e.g. through reputation, or by checking that the address they provide at least holds the expected tokens).
The Scrow team is unable to vouch for any user offering a trade, though will ban and block known scammers from their social media platforms where possible.
At present, Scrow supports MetaMask as the default wallet option to initiate a contract, as well as WalletConnect and Coinbase Wallet. Hardware wallets including Ledger and Trezor can also be used.
Because depositing funds to the escrow account requires only a simple token transaction, and not a smart contract interaction, any wallet can be used to send tokens.
This allows users to set up an escrow using a completely separate account, and then send tokens from cold storage, rather than interact with a smart contract from a cold storage wallet.
Settlement transfers are submitted to the relevant blockchain networks as soon as the escrow conditions have been met and one or other party has executed the final transaction. However, Scrow has no control over network conditions, and at times of high congestion it may be some time before transactions are confirmed.
The amount of gas required to initiate a contract, transfer tokens, and execute the contract once the necessary conditions have been met, is subject to a range of factors including the specific blockchain networks used and the levels of activity on those chains at the time the transactions are made.
Scrow is an open platform and there are no requirements for minimum or maximum transaction amounts. However, depending on gas fees it may be more economical to trade smaller amounts using other services.
Scrow enables swaps for any pair of tokens on any supported blockchain. Users will see popular tokens on supported networks in the dropdown list, but token addresses can also be pasted into the token field. Make sure you double check token addresses that are entered manually.
It is not possible for users to add new blockchains. The Scrow team is continually building out the platform with new features, including integrating further chains for which there is proven demand. Please contact the team with any suggestions you have.