Decentralized freelance payment platform powered by the Stellar blockchain
Freelancers worldwide face a broken payment system. Traditional platforms are:
- ❌ Expensive (up to 20% in platform fees and payment processor cuts)
- ❌ Slow (3–7 business days for payouts through multiple intermediaries)
- ❌ Inaccessible (millions in Africa, Asia, and Latin America can't receive international payments)
- ❌ Opaque (no transparent, verifiable record of agreements or payment history)
Stellance leverages the Stellar blockchain to create a borderless, low-cost platform where:
✅ Freelancers get paid instantly with no bank account required
✅ Clients secure work agreements with trustless on-chain escrow
✅ Payments release automatically upon work approval
✅ Everyone benefits from <$0.00001 transaction fees and 3–5 second settlement
- 💸 Instant Payouts: Receive funds in seconds, not days
- 🌍 No Bank Required: Just a Stellar wallet address to get started
- 📈 On-Chain Reputation: Build verifiable payment history and reviews
- 📱 Mobile-Friendly: Works for anyone with a smartphone
- 🔐 Escrow Protection: Funds locked until work is delivered and approved
- 🔍 Transparent Agreements: Immutable on-chain job contracts and milestones
- ⚡ Instant Settlement: Release payment the moment you approve
- 💱 Multi-Currency: Pay in USDC, XLM, or other Stellar assets
- 🤝 Smart Escrow: Stellar claimable balances for conditional payment release
- ⚖️ Dispute Resolution: Platform mediates and releases funds accordingly
- 🌐 Low Fees: Under 2% platform fee vs. 20% on traditional platforms
- 🔗 Open & Interoperable: API-first design for third-party integrations
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Frontend (Next.js 14 App Router) │
│ Web Dashboard + Mobile App (React Native) │
└────────────────────┬────────────────────────────────────┘
│
┌────────────────────▼────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Backend API (NestJS) │
│ Auth │ Users │ Jobs │ Contracts │ Payments │ Stellar │
└────────────────────┬────────────────────────────────────┘
│
┌───────────┴───────────┬──────────────┐
│ │ │
┌────────▼────────┐ ┌──────────▼─────┐ ┌───▼──────────┐
│ Stellar Node │ │ PostgreSQL │ │ IPFS │
│ (Horizon API) │ │ + Prisma ORM │ │ / AWS S3 │
│ │ │ │ │ │
│ • Escrow │ │ • User data │ │ • Contracts │
│ • Payments │ │ • Jobs │ │ • Files │
│ • USDC / XLM │ │ • Milestones │ │ • Deliverables│
└─────────────────┘ └────────────────┘ └──────────────┘
- Stellar SDK (
@stellar/stellar-sdk) — Payments and escrow - Horizon API — Blockchain queries and transaction submission
- Stellar Wallet — JWT + wallet signature authentication
- NestJS — Modular API server
- PostgreSQL — Relational database
- Prisma — ORM and migrations
- JWT — Authentication
- Next.js 14 (App Router) — Web application
- React Native — Mobile app (Phase 3)
- TailwindCSS — Styling
- Docker — Containerization
- GitHub Actions — CI/CD
- Vercel — Frontend hosting
- Railway — Backend hosting
stellance/
├── apps/
│ ├── web/ # Next.js frontend
│ │ ├── app/
│ │ │ ├── (auth)/ # Login & register
│ │ │ └── (dashboard)/ # Jobs, contracts, payments, profile
│ │ ├── components/ # UI, wallet, jobs, payments
│ │ ├── hooks/ # useStellarWallet, useEscrow, usePayments
│ │ └── lib/ # stellar.ts, api.ts
│ │
│ └── api/ # NestJS backend
│ ├── src/
│ │ ├── auth/ # Auth module
│ │ ├── users/ # Users module
│ │ ├── jobs/ # Jobs module
│ │ ├── contracts/ # Contracts module
│ │ ├── payments/ # Payments module
│ │ └── stellar/ # Core Stellar integration + escrow
│ └── prisma/ # schema.prisma
│
├── packages/
│ ├── shared/ # Shared types & utilities
│ └── stellar-utils/ # Reusable Stellar helpers
│
├── docs/ # Architecture, API, Stellar integration
├── .github/workflows/ # CI/CD pipelines
├── docker-compose.yml
├── turbo.json # Turborepo monorepo config
└── README.md
- Node.js 18+
- PostgreSQL
- Stellar testnet account (Create one here)
- Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/stellance.git
cd stellance- Install dependencies
npm install- Environment setup
cp apps/api/.env.example apps/api/.env
cp apps/web/.env.example apps/web/.env- Database setup
cd apps/api && npx prisma migrate dev- Run development servers
npm run devVisit http://localhost:3000 🎉
Backend (apps/api/.env)
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://user:password@localhost:5432/stellance
JWT_SECRET=your_jwt_secret
STELLAR_NETWORK=testnet
STELLAR_HORIZON_URL=https://horizon-testnet.stellar.org
ESCROW_SECRET_KEY=your_stellar_secret_keyFrontend (apps/web/.env.local)
NEXT_PUBLIC_API_URL=http://localhost:3001
NEXT_PUBLIC_STELLAR_NETWORK=testnet- User registration & Stellar wallet connection
- Job posting and browsing
- Basic escrow (fund → approve → release)
- Payment history dashboard
- Milestone-based payments
- Dispute resolution system
- Freelancer reputation & reviews
- Multi-currency support (USDC, XLM, EURC)
- Mobile app (React Native)
- Team / agency accounts
- API for third-party integrations
- Fiat on/off ramp integration
- 10,000+ active freelancers
We welcome contributions! Please see our Contributing Guide for details.
- Fork the repository
- Create your feature branch (
git checkout -b feature/AmazingFeature) - Commit your changes (
git commit -m 'Add some AmazingFeature') - Push to the branch (
git push origin feature/AmazingFeature) - Open a Pull Request
This project is licensed under the MIT License — see the LICENSE file for details.
- Your Name — Project Lead
- Open for contributors!
- Stellar Development Foundation — Blockchain infrastructure
- Freelancer communities worldwide — Domain expertise and feedback
- Open source community — Tools and libraries
- Website: [Coming Soon]
- Email: contact@stellance.io
- Twitter: @StellanceHQ
- Discord: Join our community
Built with ❤️ to empower freelancers worldwide
"Your work, your money, your terms."