“Send the money first.”
Buyers are asked to transfer to an account they have never seen before, with nothing but a screenshot as protection. So most of them simply do not buy.
Escrow-first marketplace · Nigeria
Connect, transact, thrive.
Dhamana is the marketplace where the money waits. Buyers pay into escrow, sellers ship with vetted logistics, and funds are only released when delivery is confirmed — so Nigerian entrepreneurs can sell to people who have never met them.
- 100%
- of orders escrow-backed
- 48h
- target dispute turnaround
- ₦0
- released before delivery
Order SKN-40218
Ankara tote bag — 2 pcs
Adire & Co · Surulere, Lagos
₦86,400
In escrowPayment secured in escrow
Today, 09:14
Seller confirmed & packed
Today, 10:02
Out for delivery · Ikeja hub
Rider assigned · ETA 2h
Buyer confirms → seller paid
Auto-release after 24h inspection
Seller receives on confirmation
₦79,488
Dhamana fee (blended)
7.5%
Illustrative order — sample data, not a real transaction.
Escrow on every orderVerified sellersIntegrated delivery48h dispute resolutionInstant payout on confirmationNo listing feesEscrow on every orderVerified sellersIntegrated delivery48h dispute resolutionInstant payout on confirmationNo listing feesEscrow on every orderVerified sellersIntegrated delivery48h dispute resolutionInstant payout on confirmationNo listing feesEscrow on every orderVerified sellersIntegrated delivery48h dispute resolutionInstant payout on confirmationNo listing fees
The gap in the market
Online trading in Nigeria breaks at exactly one moment: trust.
The listings are there. The demand is there. What is missing is a referee standing between two strangers at the moment money changes hands.
Pay-on-delivery bleeds sellers.
Rejected parcels, no-shows and return trips turn a healthy margin into a loss. Sellers end up refusing exactly the orders they need most.
Nobody owns the outcome.
Classifieds hand over a phone number and disappear. Big marketplaces bury the seller behind their own brand. Neither side gets a referee.
How it works
Escrow is not a feature we added. It is the product.
Four steps, every single order, with no way to opt out — because protection that is optional is protection nobody has when it matters.
- 01
Buyer pays into escrow
Card, transfer or USSD. The money lands in a protected Dhamana wallet — never in a stranger's account.
- 02
Seller ships with certainty
The seller sees funds confirmed, books a vetted courier in one tap and shares live tracking from the order screen.
- 03
Delivery is verified
Courier scans and delivery photos are attached to the order automatically, so the timeline speaks for itself.
- 04
Money is released
The buyer confirms — or the inspection window closes — and the seller is paid out instantly. Disputes freeze the funds until resolved.
The trust layer
Everything a safe transaction needs, in one place.
Payments, delivery and resolution are usually three separate problems a seller has to solve alone. Dhamana carries all three.
Escrow wallet
Every naira on Dhamana sits in escrow by default. Not a checkbox, not a premium add-on — the only way to transact here.
Verified sellers
Business details, bank account and ID are checked before a shop can accept its first order. Verification badges are earned, not bought.
Logistics built in
Book a pickup, print a label, track the parcel. Or use your own riders and attach the tracking reference yourself.
Real dispute resolution
A human team reviews the order timeline, courier scans and evidence from both sides. Target turnaround: 48 hours.
Instant payouts
Confirmed order, settled balance. Payouts hit the seller's bank account the moment escrow releases — no weekly cycles.
Reputation that counts
Ratings are tied to completed, escrow-backed orders only. A five-star shop on Dhamana actually delivered five-star orders.
Why Dhamana
Classifieds give you reach. Big marketplaces give you rules. Neither gives you a referee.
Nigerians already trade online at scale on platforms like Jiji, Jumia and Konga. What they still do without is a neutral party holding the money until both sides are made whole.
| Capability | Dhamana | Classifieds apps | Large marketplaces |
|---|---|---|---|
| Payment held until delivery is confirmed | Yes | No | Varies |
| Seller keeps the customer relationship | Yes | Yes | No |
| Vetted courier booked from the order | Yes | No | Yes |
| Human dispute review with evidence trail | Yes | No | Varies |
| Payout on confirmation, not on a cycle | Yes | Varies | No |
| No fee on orders that never complete | Yes | Yes | No |
Comparison describes common patterns across the classifieds and large-marketplace categories rather than any single operator, and offerings change over time. Jiji, Jumia and Konga are trademarks of their respective owners and are not affiliated with Dhamana.
For sellers
Sell to people who have never met you.
- Turn “I don't know you” into a completed order — escrow does the trusting for you.
- Stop absorbing failed pay-on-delivery trips and rejected parcels.
- Get paid the moment delivery is confirmed, straight to your bank account.
- Carry your rating with you as your shop grows across states.
For buyers
Shop without holding your breath.
- Your money is held by Dhamana until the parcel is in your hands.
- Inspect what arrives before the seller is paid.
- Track the delivery from pickup to doorstep in one place.
- Open a dispute in a tap and keep your funds frozen while it is reviewed.
Voices from the pilot
What early sellers and buyers tell us.
Half my customers used to disappear the moment I asked for a transfer. With escrow they just pay — my completed orders more than doubled in the pilot.
I stopped doing pay-on-delivery because of failed drops. Dhamana gives me the same trust without me eating the delivery cost when someone changes their mind.
It is the first time I have bought from a small shop online without that knot in my stomach. I could see exactly where my money was the whole time.
Illustrative quotes from our pilot programme, shown as sample content while Dhamana is in pre-launch.
Pricing
You only pay when the deal actually completes.
A flat seller subscription plus a blended take-rate of roughly 7–8% on completed orders, covering commission, payment processing and logistics. Buyers never pay a subscription.
Buyer
Freealways
Escrow protection on every order you place. No subscription, ever.
- Funds held until you confirm delivery
- 24h inspection window on every order
- One-tap dispute with evidence upload
- Live delivery tracking
Seller
$7per month, billed in ₦
Everything a shop needs to sell to strangers safely — plus ~7–8% blended per completed order.
- Unlimited listings, no listing fees
- Escrow wallet and instant payouts
- Discounted vetted courier rates
- Verification badge and shop page
- Dispute support from a real team
Scale
Customfor high-volume merchants
For shops moving serious volume across multiple states and warehouses.
- Volume-based fee schedule
- Multi-user shop accounts
- Priority dispute handling
- Dedicated onboarding partner
Prices shown in USD and billed in naira at the prevailing rate. Blended rate is indicative and varies by category, order value and delivery distance.
FAQ
Questions people ask before their first order.
Still unsure about something? Join the waitlist and reply to the welcome email — a human on the team reads every one.
Join the waitlistWhen a buyer pays on Dhamana, the money goes into a protected Dhamana escrow wallet — not straight into the seller's account. The seller sees the funds are confirmed and ships with confidence. Once the buyer confirms delivery (or the inspection window closes), we release the payout. Nobody has to trust a stranger; they only have to trust the process.
Pay-on-delivery protects the buyer but punishes the seller: failed deliveries, rejected parcels and tied-up stock. Escrow protects both sides. The seller knows the money exists before the parcel leaves the shop, and the buyer knows it will not be released until the item arrives as described.
The buyer opens a dispute from the order screen during the inspection window. Funds stay frozen in escrow while our resolution team reviews the order timeline, delivery scans and photo evidence from both sides. Most cases are settled within 48 hours, and the money returns to whichever side the evidence supports.
A Dhamana Seller subscription is $7 per month, billed in naira, plus a blended fee of roughly 7–8% per completed order that covers commission, payment processing and subsidised logistics. There is no listing fee and no charge on orders that never complete.
No. Dhamana is integrated with vetted courier partners, so you can book a pickup, print a label and share tracking straight from the order. If you already have your own riders, you can use them and simply add the tracking reference — escrow and delivery confirmation still work the same way.
We are onboarding an initial cohort of sellers in Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt, then expanding state by state. Join the waitlist and we will tell you the moment your city opens — waitlist sellers are onboarded first.
Pre-launch access
Be there the day the market opens.
We are onboarding our first cohort of sellers in Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt. Waitlist members get early access, founding-seller pricing and a say in what we build next.
- Free early access — no card required
- Founding-seller pricing locked for 12 months
- Priority onboarding when your state opens
Join the waitlist
One email when we open in your city. Nothing else.
Already onboarded? Create your account or log in to track your protected orders.