Escrow Explained: Why B2B Teams Should Never Pay Freelancers Upfront
2026-05-24 · 5 min read
The upfront problem
Every year, B2B teams lose real money to freelancers who take a deposit and disappear. Even good-faith relationships sour when scope changes and there's no neutral hold on funds.
How escrow works
You fund the contract before work starts. Funds are held by a neutral third party. The freelancer sees the money is secured — but doesn't get paid until you approve delivery.
Why freelancers love it
Serious freelancers prefer escrow because they know the client is real and the money exists. It's a signal of a serious buyer, not a red flag.
How Shahnaz Connect implements it
Stripe-funded escrow, 10% platform fee, transparent dispute process, Stripe Connect payouts for supported countries and manual payouts for the rest of the world.