Seller Guide: From Listing to PayoutSeller Guide:From Listing to Payout

TL;DR To sell on OpenVPT you need a verified KYC status and a wallet bound with SIWE. Every listing is reviewed by a person before it goes live. When a buyer pays, their USDC is locked in an on-chain escrow contract. You deliver before the deadline (a file, a license key or a checklist), and once the buyer confirms or the inspection window runs out, the funds are released with two of three signatures. The default platform fee is 5%, charged only on the share you actually receive. Clear listings, on-time delivery and keeping every conversation on the platform are what keep disputes away.

This guide follows one order from listing to payout: what you do at each stage, what the system does, and when the money reaches you.

1. Two gates before you can sell: KYC and a verified wallet#

There is one account type on OpenVPT. Everyone can buy, but to create a listing the system checks two things:

1. Your KYC status must be VERIFIED. Pending, rejected or not-yet-submitted KYC means listing creation fails.
2. You must own a verified wallet on the listing's chain. OpenVPT currently trades in USDC on Base, so you need a wallet address verified on Base.

What binding a wallet with SIWE actually does#

Wallet verification uses SIWE (Sign-In with Ethereum, EIP-4361):

1. You start the binding flow and the server issues a one-time nonce tied to your account, address and chain.
2. Your wallet asks you to sign a short text message. This is a message signature, not a transaction: it costs no gas and gives nobody permission to move your assets.
3. The server checks the signature and marks the address as verified.

Worth knowing:

• The nonce is valid for 10 minutes and works only once.
• If you bind several wallets, new orders use your primary wallet first. That address receives the payout for the order, and it is the address you sign with when releasing funds.
• Buyer and seller cannot be the same wallet address; such orders are rejected.

Keep your seed phrase and private keys safe. OpenVPT does not hold them and cannot recover them. Anyone claiming to be "support" and asking for your seed phrase is a scammer.

2. Writing a listing that passes review#

A new listing starts in PENDING_REVIEW. An admin reviews it by hand and either approves it (ACTIVE) or rejects it (REJECTED, always with a reason). Only active listings appear in public search.

Field rules#

Choosing a delivery type#

• File (FILE): one file per delivery. The default size limit is 100 MiB (the platform's current configuration applies). Zip multiple files into one archive.
• License key (LICENSE_KEY): a text value of up to 4,096 characters, such as a serial number or activation code.
• Checklist (CHECKLIST): 1–100 items of up to 500 characters each, each marked done or not done. Good for services like remote setup or consulting deliverables that don't fit in a single file.

The delivery type is fixed when you create the listing. A delivery of a different type is rejected.

Common reasons for rejection#

The platform's published rules always take precedence, but these typically get rejected:

• A title that doesn't match the description, or a description too vague for a buyer to know what they'll receive.
• Content you have no right to sell: pirated software, cracks, unlicensed courses or assets, other people's accounts.
• Personal data, credentials, leaked databases or other sensitive information.
• Malware or tools built for intrusion or fraud.
• Off-platform contact details or payment methods in the description that steer buyers around escrow.
• Anything else that breaks the law or the platform rules.

Editing a listing#

• Changing the title, description, category, price, day settings or images on an active or rejected listing sends it back to review. It stays out of search until it's approved again.
• You can't edit content while the listing has open orders (pending payment, funded, delivered, disputed or settling).
• You can pause an active listing to stop new orders. Resuming a paused listing goes through review again.
• Archived listings can't be changed.

3. Pricing and the 5% fee#

The default fee rate is 500 basis points, or 5%, stored on the listing when you create it:

fee = order amount × feeBps ÷ 10000   (rounded down to the smallest USDC unit)

USDC has 6 decimals, so the smallest unit is 0.000001 USDC. Amounts are always handled as integers.

Worked examples#

The last row shows the rounding: 12.345678 × 5% = 0.6172839, rounded down to 0.617283 USDC.

The fee is pro-rata#

OpenVPT charges the fee only on the part of the order you actually receive:

• Full payout to you: the full fee applies.
• Full refund to the buyer: no fee. The buyer gets the whole amount back.
• A partial ruling in a dispute: the fee is scaled to your share.

The escrow contract enforces this: the platform's cut must be at least fee × toSeller ÷ amount, and the three parts must sum to the escrowed amount.

4. What happens once an order is placed#

Before payment#

A new order is PENDING_PAYMENT and the buyer has 24 hours to pay. The funding authorization they receive expires after at most 15 minutes and is refreshed on demand. If the buyer cancels, the order shows as "cancelling". The system only finalises the cancellation after every authorization the buyer might still hold has expired and it has checked the chain for a payment. If a payment lands first, the payment wins.

You don't deliver at this stage, and the system won't let you.

After payment is confirmed#

When the indexer sees the funding event on-chain with enough block confirmations, the order becomes FUNDED:

• The buyer's USDC sits in the VPTEscrow contract. It is not in a platform wallet and not in yours.
• Your delivery deadline starts: confirmation time + the listing's delivery days.
• If you miss the deadline, the system automatically starts a full refund to the buyer, and you won't be paid for that order.

5. Delivering: file, license key or checklist#

You submit the delivery from the order page. The system checks that you're the seller, the order is FUNDED and the deadline hasn't passed. You can add a note of up to 2,000 characters, such as installation steps.

Why the SHA-256 of your file is recorded#

The system stores the SHA-256 hash of every uploaded file: a fingerprint that changes completely if a single bit changes.

That protects you:

• The buyer downloads that exact file via a short-lived link. If anyone later claims "the file was different", the hash settles it objectively.
• An arbitrator can check whether a file submitted in a dispute matches what you originally delivered.

Keep your own copy of the delivered file and compute the hash yourself for your records:

shasum -a 256 your-product-v2.1.zip

License keys are encrypted at rest#

License keys are stored encrypted with AES-256-GCM. They are decrypted only when someone entitled to see the delivery (a party to the order, or authorised platform admins and arbitrators) opens it, and each access is logged. Send keys through the delivery feature only, never in chat.

After delivery#

The order moves to DELIVERED and the inspection window starts: 3 days by default, or whatever the listing specifies. Each order has exactly one delivery, so double-check before you submit.

6. Inspection and getting paid (2-of-3)#

During inspection the buyer can either confirm receipt or open a dispute. If they do neither, the payout flow starts automatically when the window ends.

How a payout works#

VPTEscrow has only one way for funds to leave: settle. It needs signatures from two different parties out of three: the buyer, the seller and the platform signer. Everyone signs the same EIP-712 "Settle" message stating how much goes to the seller, the buyer and the platform.

Once two valid signatures are in, the platform relays the transaction for you, so you don't need gas. When the settlement is confirmed on-chain, the order becomes COMPLETED (the seller received something) or REFUNDED (the seller received nothing).

Why the platform can't move funds on its own#

• The platform holds only one of the three keys, and one signature can't release anything.
• The contract owner can only pause new funding, rotate the platform signer, manage the token allowlist and set the fee recipient. No function lets the owner settle or withdraw escrowed funds.
• Pausing only blocks new payments. Settling existing orders still works.

7. When a dispute is opened#

Who can open one#

Only the buyer can open a dispute, only on a delivered order and only within the inspection window. The reason must be 10–5,000 characters. The order becomes DISPUTED and no automatic payout happens while it's open.

Evidence you can submit#

Both sides can add evidence of three kinds:

• Text: up to 10,000 characters. Lay out the timeline and the facts.
• Link: http or https URLs only.
• File: 20 MiB by default. Its SHA-256 is recorded too.

Strong evidence: the listing description at purchase time, your delivery note, key on-platform chat excerpts, screenshots or a recording of the product working, and activation records. Off-platform conversations are hard to verify.

How arbitration works#

1. An arbitrator is assigned (status: under review). Arbitrators can't be a party to the order.
2. The arbitrator reviews the evidence and rules: the seller's share is set in basis points (0–10,000), with a written reason.
3. The platform signs the resulting settlement automatically.
4. The buyer or the seller (usually whoever receives funds) co-signs with their wallet, and the platform relays it.

Example: a 1,200 USDC order ruled 30% to the seller#

Escrowed        1,200 USDC   (original fee 60 USDC)
Seller gross    1,200 × 30%        = 360 USDC
Platform fee    60 × 360 ÷ 1,200   =  18 USDC
Seller receives 360 − 18           = 342 USDC
Buyer refunded  1,200 − 360        = 840 USDC
Total           342 + 840 + 18     = 1,200 USDC

Two things to keep in mind. The platform signs a settlement at most once per order, so a signed ruling isn't revised. And there is currently no appeal step, so make your first round of evidence complete.

8. Reviews and credit score#

After an order is completed or refunded, buyer and seller can each leave one review of the other: 1–5 stars and an optional comment of up to 2,000 characters. Reviews move the other party's credit score:

Every account starts at 100, and the score stays between 0 and 1,000. Negative reviews move the score more than positive ones. Your public profile shows your credit score, whether you're KYC-verified, your average rating and review count, and your number of completed orders.

9. Practical ways to avoid disputes#

• Say what's not included. "No installation support." "Windows 11 only." Most disputes come down to mismatched expectations.
• Be conservative with delivery days. A missed deadline means an automatic refund. Set a longer window and deliver early.
• Test before you deliver in a clean environment, and keep screenshots.
• Keep every conversation in OpenVPT chat. When a message contains an email address, phone number, Telegram, WhatsApp or WeChat handle, or an external payment link, the chat flags it and warns the sender. Messages aren't blocked, and only on-platform records can be turned into evidence you submit in a dispute.
• Say no to off-platform deals. If a buyer suggests paying you directly to save the fee, you lose escrow and arbitration too.
• Secure your account. Turn on two-factor authentication (TOTP). If an account is banned for breaking the rules, its active listings are paused and it can't act on open orders; those orders keep moving through the system and the other party.

Seller checklist#

Before you sell

• KYC status is VERIFIED
• Wallet bound on Base with SIWE, and your primary wallet is the address you want to be paid to
• Two-factor authentication is on

When listing

• The title names the product, version and delivery form
• The description covers contents, compatibility, limits and exclusions
• The delivery type matches what you'll actually deliver
• Delivery days include a buffer, and inspection days are reasonable
• No off-platform contact details, and nothing you don't have the right to sell

During an order

• Wait for FUNDED before delivering
• Deliver before the deadline, and keep the file and its SHA-256 locally
• Send license keys only through the delivery feature
• If the inspection window expires, sign the payout with your wallet

In a dispute

• Submit text, links and files together, complete the first time
• Keep all explanations on the platform

This article describes how OpenVPT works today. It is not legal, tax or investment advice. Income from selling digital goods may carry tax and regulatory obligations where you live, so check with a qualified professional.

Next steps#

• Related reading: Disputes and arbitration
• Related reading: How 2-of-3 multisig protects your money
• See the whole flow at a glance on How it works.
• Check the fee details on Pricing.
• Browse Listings to see how other sellers present their products.
• Questions? Visit the Help center or contact us.