01
Agree
Set up the project and split it into milestones. Scope, deliverables, amount. Both sides sign off before anything moves.
Homepage designDraft
Milestone 01$2,000.00
Milestone 02$2,500.00
Early access for freelancers
Know you'll be paid before you start the work
Agree the milestones. Your client funds them up front. The money is locked until the work is approved, then it lands in your account in minutes, wherever you are.
Available balance$4,180.00
Held in escrow$2,000.00
Released this month$6,450.00
Active projects3
Milestone 01, Homepage design
Acme Studio · funded 2 Aug
Account details
USDEURGBP
- Name
- Maria Santos
- Account no.
- 8402 119 553
- Routing (ACH)
- 026 073 150
- Type
- Checking
Recent activityView more
| Amount | Date | Project | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| $2,500.00 | Aug 2 | Brand refresh, Northwind | Released |
| $2,000.00 | Aug 2 | Homepage design, Acme | In escrow |
| $1,950.00 | Jul 28 | Landing page, Kestrel | Released |
| $800.00 | Jul 24 | Icon set, Meridian | Awaiting funding |
Someone always has to go first
You start without knowing you'll be paid. Your client pays without knowing they'll receive. Every tool built to close that gap makes you trade something you shouldn't have to.
Trust you rent, not own
Escrow only exists inside marketplaces. You pay for it with a cut of every invoice, and you don't get to take your clients with you.
Borders eat the rest
Three to five days to clear. Three to six percent lost to FX spreads and intermediary fees you never see itemised.
The fix brings its own mess
Faster rails exist. Most products built on them hand you wallets, seed phrases and gas fees. You wanted to invoice a client.
How Clinq works
02
Fund
Your client funds the milestone before you begin. You can see the money is there. A milestone can't start until it is.
Milestone 01Funded
Held in escrow$2,000.00
Released to date$0.00
03
Deliver
You do the work and submit it against the milestone. The money doesn't move while your client reviews, and it doesn't go back to them either.
SubmittedIn review
Still held$2,000.00
Auto-release in7 days
04
Release
Your client approves and the money is yours in minutes, into your account or straight out to your local bank.
ApprovedReleased
Paid to you$1,980.00
ArrivalUnder 2 min
Everything the work needs, in one place
Escrow, invoicing, projects and payouts. Not four tools stitched together.
Named accounts in USD, EUR and GBP
Real account details in your own name. Clients pay you like a local, and you withdraw to your own bank on demand.
Escrow on every milestone
Funded before you start, locked until it's approved.
Invoicing built in
Raise an invoice against a milestone. No separate tool, no chasing.
Projects in one view
Multiple clients, milestones and approvals on one dashboard.
Identity-verified on both sides
Everyone on Clinq completes identity checks before they can send or receive. You always know who's on the other end of the milestone.
The same protection, from either end
One product, two sides of the same milestone.
Know it's funded
See the milestone is paid for before you open a file.
Your own account details
USD, EUR and GBP in your name. Clients pay you like a local.
Withdraw on demand
Your bank, your currency, whenever you want it.
Keep your clients
No lock-in, no bidding, no Connects, no marketplace in between.
1%, not 10–15%
Your rate stays your rate.
Invoice and track in one place
Multiple clients, multiple projects, one dashboard.
Your money stays yours
Funded milestones are locked, not spent. Nothing releases until you approve it.
Identity-verified both ways
Everyone completes identity checks before they can send or receive.
1% is the whole fee
No markup on every invoice. No premium tier.
Pay anyone, anywhere
A freelancer in Manila is as easy as one across town.
See the whole project
Milestones, deliverables, approvals and invoices in one view.
A real dispute process
If something goes wrong, nothing moves until it's resolved.
What it costs
1%
Clinq's entire fee. Nothing else added.
No fee to raise an invoice. No monthly minimum. No fee to hold a balance. No charge to open your account.
Withdrawing to your local bank has its own cost, which varies by country. You see the exact amount that will land in your account before you confirm anything, so there is never a number you didn't agree to.
| $2,000 milestone · US client → freelancer in the Philippines | Clinq | Upwork | Bank wire | Wise |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Client pays | $2,020 | $2,100 | $2,035 | $2,010 |
| Freelancer receives | $1,980 | $1,755 | $1,890 | $1,990 |
| Time to arrive | Minutes | 5–10 days | 3–5 days | 1–2 days |
| Escrow protection | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| You keep the client | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
If something goes wrong, the money doesn't move
Either side can raise a dispute against a milestone. The funds stay exactly where they are, not with you and not with your client, until it's settled. No one is out of pocket while it's being worked out.
Both sides submit evidence
Against what was agreed in the milestone: scope, deliverables, timestamps.
Clinq reviews and decides
Both sides have 3 days to submit. We review against the milestone and decide within 5 business days. The decision determines where the funds go, and we tell you both why.
Silence isn't leverage
A client who stops responding can't strand your finished work. Submitted milestones release to you automatically after 7 days unless your client raises a dispute in that window.
Wait, is this crypto?
No wallets to manage. No seed phrases. No gas. No token to buy. You sign up with an email address.
Dollars in, dollars out
Under the hood we settle on stablecoin rails. That's why payments clear in minutes and don't lose 4% crossing a border. Your balance doesn't move with any market.
Your money is yours
Clinq can never withdraw your funds or move them to ourselves. The only thing we can do is decide a disputed milestone, and only if one of you raises one.
Held by the contract, not by us
Funded milestones sit in an escrow contract, not a Clinq bank account. When your client accepts, it releases automatically.
Identity verified
Both sides complete checks before sending or receiving anything.
If Clinq shuts down
Your balance stays yours and stays accessible. Nothing to claim from an administrator.
If you lose your device
Sign in again from anywhere with your email address. We verify it's you, then your account and balance come straight back. There is no phrase to write down and nothing you can permanently lose.
Coming soon
In development
Clinq Card. Spend your balance directly
Before you sign up
Do I need a wallet or any crypto knowledge?
No. You sign up with an email address, you're shown dollars, euros or pounds, and you withdraw to your bank. There is no seed phrase and nothing to install.
What currency do I actually receive?
Your balance is held in dollars. You can withdraw to your local bank in your local currency on demand.
What if my client never approves the milestone?
Submitted milestones auto-release after a set window unless your client raises a dispute. An unresponsive client can't hold finished work hostage.
What if the freelancer disappears mid-project?
Unreleased milestone funds haven't left your control. You raise a dispute and the funds stay locked until it's resolved.
What happens to my money if Clinq shuts down?
Your balance is self-custodied, so it isn't ours to lose. It stays accessible to you with nothing to claim from an administrator.
What are the fees, really?
1% of the milestone amount. No fee to raise an invoice, no monthly fee, no charge to hold a balance. Withdrawing to a local bank has its own cost that varies by country, and you always see the exact amount that will reach your account before you confirm.
Which countries are supported at launch?
Early access opens first for freelancers in the Philippines, India, Bangladesh, Nigeria and Kenya, receiving from clients in the United States, United Kingdom, European Union and Australia. We add corridors continuously, and the country you give us at sign-up decides which ones we open next. If yours isn't listed yet, join anyway and we'll tell you the moment it is.
How is this taxed?
Clinq doesn't withhold tax and doesn't file on your behalf. What we give you is a clean record: every milestone dated, itemised and downloadable, with the fee shown separately, so your accountant has what they need. How freelance income is treated varies by country, so check your own position with a local tax adviser before relying on anything here.
Stop working on trust alone
Early access is opening in Southeast Asia, Africa and South Asia first. Founding accounts keep 1% for life.