Selling Crypto
Accept a match, fund escrow, verify payment, and release USDT to the buyer.
Selling USDT means accepting a match against your ad (or matching someone else's buy ad), funding escrow, and — this is the part to get right — only releasing the USDT after you've personally confirmed the fiat payment actually landed.
Expected time
7 minutes
Difficulty
Beginner
You'll need
A connected wallet, USDT to sell, A little BNB for gas
Getting matched#
If you've published a sell ad, you'll get a notification the moment a taker matches it. You can also directly match someone else's open buy ad the same way a buyer matches yours — see Buying Crypto for that flow from the other side.
Funding escrow#
- 1
Review the match
Check the buyer's amount and confirm it's within your ad's limits.
- 2
Deposit the trade amount
Sign to move your USDT into the smart contract's escrow — this is the only step where your actual USDT changes hands (into escrow, not to the buyer yet).
- 3
Trade moves to Funded
The buyer can now see the funds are locked and will begin the payment step.
What if the buyer never pays after I fund?
Trade #TFY-20441
250.00 USDT
Waiting for payment#
The buyer has until the Settlement Time Window elapses to send payment and mark the trade paid. You'll see a live countdown and a notification the moment they click I Have Paid.
Verifying the payment — the most important step#
Never release on a screenshot alone
- 1
Open your own banking or mobile money app
Don't rely on anything sent to you in the trade chat as proof by itself.
- 2
Confirm the amount and sender match
The amount received should match the trade exactly, from an account consistent with what the buyer told you.
- 3
If it checks out, release
Click Confirm Fiat Received & Release — one action that both confirms and releases the escrowed USDT to the buyer.
Trade #TFY-20441
250.00 USDT
Buyer's claim
37,500 ETB via 📱 M-Pesa · reference TFY20441
If the payment doesn't check out#
Don't release. Message the buyer in the trade chat first — it may be a timing or bank-processing delay. If it isn't resolved, you can open a dispute immediately (sellers don't have to wait out the settlement window the way buyers do) — see Disputes.
- Releasing because the buyer sent a screenshot, without checking your own account.
- Releasing before the amount received exactly matches the trade — partial payments should not be treated as complete.
- Waiting too long to check your account after the buyer marks paid — verify promptly so the trade doesn't stall unnecessarily.
What if I fund escrow and the buyer never pays? Once the payment window elapses without a paid claim, the trade can be settled back to you or you can pursue the standard resolution path.
Can I sell to a specific person directly? Not by name — but a high buy ad shown to you, or your own sell ad, only gets matched by whoever chooses to. Reputation helps you judge who you're dealing with either way.
Do I get my bond back after a normal sale? Yes, in full — see Bonds & Fees.
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