StelloPay is a multi-chain decentralized payroll and escrow platform that enables companies to lock funds upfront and pay contributors automatically—whether as recurring payroll for employees or escrow-based payments for freelancers and contractors.

By combining programmable smart contracts, escrow guarantees, grace periods, and dispute resolution, StelloPay eliminates trust issues in global payments while enabling instant, low-cost, and transparent compensation across borders.

StelloPay is designed to work across multiple blockchains, starting with Stellar and Starknet, and expanding to other ecosystems in the future.

Modern teams are global, but payroll systems are still broken.

• ❌ High fees – international bank transfers and intermediaries are expensive

• ❌ Slow settlement – payments take days or weeks across borders

• ❌ Lack of trust – freelancers fear non-payment; employers fear overpayment

• ❌ No transparency – unclear payment status and disputes

• ❌ Limited access – many contributors don't have reliable banking access

There is no unified system that works for:

• Employees

• Freelancers

• Contractors

• DAOs

• Grant programs

StelloPay introduces a unified escrow-based payment protocol that supports both:

1. Automated Payroll (Employees)

2. Programmable Escrow (Freelancers & Contractors)

• ✅ Funds are locked upfront in escrow

• ✅ Payments are released automatically based on rules

• ✅ Supports time-based & milestone-based payments

• ✅ Includes cancellation protection + grace periods

• ✅ Built-in dispute resolution with arbiters

• ✅ Works across multiple blockchains

• ✅ Instant, low-cost, and transparent payments

• Remote-first companies

• Startups & enterprises

• Freelancers & contractors

• DAOs & Web3 teams

• Grant programs & ecosystems

• Gig economy platforms

**Lock funds first.

Define rules clearly.

Let code enforce fairness.**

StelloPay treats payroll as a special case of escrow.

1. Company adds employees and salary configuration

2. Company locks total payroll funds upfront

3. Salaries are released automatically every pay cycle

4. Employees receive instant payments to their wallets

5. Unused funds are refundable if payroll is stopped

sequenceDiagram
    participant Company
    participant Escrow
    participant PayrollEngine
    participant Employee
    Company->>Escrow: Lock payroll funds
    Company->>PayrollEngine: Configure salaries & schedule
    PayrollEngine->>Escrow: Trigger monthly release
    Escrow->>Employee: Salary payment

1. Client initializes an agreement

2. Client locks funds upfront

3. Agreement becomes active

4. Payments are released based on time or milestones

5. Contract completes automatically or is cancelled safely

stateDiagram-v2
    [*] --> Created
    Created --> Funded
    Funded --> Active
    Active --> Completed
    Active --> Cancelled

Used for:

• Salaries

• Weekly / monthly contracts

Payment = elapsed_time × rate

Contributor can claim earned funds periodically.

Used for:

• Deliverables

• Freelance projects

• Grants

Approve milestone → Claim → Release funds

Approval acts as an irreversible commitment.

StelloPay prevents unfair cancellations.

If a client cancels early:

1. Agreement moves to Cancelled

2. Grace period starts (e.g., 7 days)

3. During grace period:

   • Contributor can claim earned payments
   • Contributor can raise a dispute

4. After grace period:

   • Remaining funds are refunded if no dispute exists

flowchart TD
    Cancel[Client Cancels]
    Grace[Grace Period Active]
    Claim[Contributor Claims]
    Dispute[Raise Dispute]
    Refund[Refund Remaining Funds]
    Cancel --> Grace
    Grace --> Claim
    Grace --> Dispute
    Grace --> Refund

When disputes arise, StelloPay uses arbiters.

How disputes work:

1. Contributor raises dispute during grace period

2. Arbiter reviews on-chain data + off-chain proof

3. Arbiter decides:

   • Pay contributor
   • Refund client
   • Split funds

4. Decision is enforced on-chain

This ensures fairness without centralized control.

StelloPay is chain-agnostic by design.

Supported (now & future):

• Stellar → fast, low-cost payroll

• Starknet → programmable escrow & disputes

• Future EVM / L2 chains → scalable expansion

Key insight:

• Business logic stays the same.

• Execution adapts per chain.

graph LR
    UI[StelloPay App]
    Engine[Payment Engine]
    Stellar[Stellar]
    Starknet[Starknet]
    Other[Other Chains]
    UI --> Engine
    Engine --> Stellar
    Engine --> Starknet
    Engine --> Other