Escrow vs direct
Why escrow beats paying a stranger directly
Every game trade needs someone to go first. Escrow means neither side has to.
4 min read · updated October 16, 2026
Paying directly
Sending money by friends-and-family transfer or crypto to a seller you found in a chat leaves you with no way to get it back if nothing arrives.
Discord middlemen
A middleman can help, but you are trusting one more person, and fake middlemen who impersonate real ones are a common scam.
Marketplace escrow
On E4U the buyer pays E4U, the seller delivers on the order page, and funds release only after the buyer confirms or the review window ends. If there is a problem, the payment freezes and our team reviews the recorded evidence.
Sellers benefit too: they can see the order is funded before they deliver, so there is no risk of handing over an account and never being paid.