Terms of Service

Stakd is a commitment contract platform. You voluntarily stake money on a personal goal. If you complete the goal according to the agreed terms, your stake is returned. If you fail, your stake is forfeited: 80% is donated to the charity you selected, and 20% is retained by Stakd as a platform and processing fee. Stakd does not profit from your failure beyond this fee — it covers operational costs only.

Stakd is not a financial product, investment vehicle, gambling platform, or insurance product. It is a behavioral commitment tool.

You must be at least 18 years old and legally capable of entering binding contracts in your jurisdiction to use Stakd. By creating an account, you represent that this is the case.

• Goal creation: When you create a goal, you specify the goal type, target, duration, stake amount, and charity. These terms are binding from the moment you submit payment.
• Stake: Your stake is held in escrow for the duration of your goal. It is not invested or used by Stakd during this period.
• Check-ins: You are required to submit proof of completion for each check-in period. Proof is reviewed by a member of the Stakd team within 24 hours. Approved check-ins count toward your goal. Rejected check-ins give you a 24-hour window to resubmit with better proof.
• Resubmission: A first rejection opens a 24-hour resubmit window. A second rejection on the same check-in automatically triggers goal failure. There are no further appeals after a second rejection.
• Success: If all required check-ins are approved, your full stake is returned to you. The 10% platform fee charged at goal creation is non-refundable.
• Failure: If a required check-in is missed or rejected twice, your goal fails. 80% of your stake is donated to your chosen charity. 20% is retained by Stakd as a processing fee. This is final and non-reversible.

• Platform fee: A non-refundable 10% platform fee is charged at the time you commit to a goal. This covers our operational costs and is not recoverable regardless of outcome.
• Forfeit split: If your goal fails, your remaining stake (after the platform fee) is split: 80% to your chosen charity, 20% retained by Stakd as a processing and administration fee.

All fees are disclosed at goal creation before you submit payment.

We review every check-in submission. We approve submissions that clearly demonstrate you completed the required activity. We reject submissions that are blurry, unidentifiable, appear fabricated, or do not match the goal criteria. We give reasonable benefit of the doubt on genuinely ambiguous submissions.

Our review decisions are final. We are not liable for incorrect rejections made in good faith. If you believe a rejection was clearly erroneous, contact hello@stakd.com within the resubmit window.

We route forfeit donations to the charity you selected. Donations are made in aggregate on a monthly basis. We are not responsible for the actions of any charity and do not guarantee any specific use of donated funds by the receiving organization. Donation receipts are not provided by Stakd — contact the charity directly.

By using Stakd you grant us the right to collect, analyze, and use your behavioral and outcome data in anonymized, de-identified aggregate form for the following purposes:

• Product improvement: Understanding what goal structures, stake amounts, and durations produce the best outcomes.
• Research: Contributing to the field of behavioral economics through anonymized aggregate outcome datasets.
• Commercial licensing: We may license anonymized, de-identified aggregate behavioral datasets to third parties including insurers, employers, wellness platforms, and researchers. No individual user is identifiable in any licensed dataset.
• Business sale or acquisition: The aggregate dataset is a business asset and transfers in any sale, merger, or acquisition of Stakd. Your personal data transfers subject to the protections in our Privacy Policy.

This data licensing right survives account deletion, as the aggregate dataset contains no personally identifying information once de-identified. Your personal data handling is governed by our Privacy Policy.

• Fraud: Submitting fabricated, edited, or stolen proof images. This will result in immediate account termination and forfeiture of all active stakes.
• Abuse: Attempting to manipulate the review process, creating multiple accounts, or exploiting platform errors.
• Chargebacks: Initiating payment chargebacks in bad faith. Staked funds are committed at goal creation — chargebacks will be disputed and may result in permanent account bans.

You may close your account at any time by contacting hello@stakd.com. Active goal stakes are not refunded upon voluntary closure — your goals will be evaluated at their natural end date. We may terminate accounts for violations of these Terms, with or without notice.

Stakd is provided “as is.” We do not guarantee that using Stakd will help you achieve your goals. We are not liable for lost stakes resulting from platform outages beyond our reasonable control, provided we make commercially reasonable efforts to maintain uptime. Our liability to you is limited to the amount you have staked on the platform at the time of any claim.

We are not liable for: the actions of charities receiving donations; decisions made by your employer, insurer, or any third party based on your goal outcomes; or any indirect, incidental, or consequential damages arising from your use of the platform.

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Delaware, United States, without regard to conflict of law principles. Any disputes will be resolved by binding arbitration under the rules of the American Arbitration Association, on an individual basis — no class actions.

We will notify you by email at least 14 days before any material changes take effect. Continued use after the effective date constitutes acceptance. If you do not accept updated terms, close your account before the effective date.

Questions about these Terms: hello@stakd.com