Cordelia, The Escrow Vault

The fear we're solving

The wire transfer is the moment everyone freezes.

It's the highest-friction moment in destination wedding planning. The vendor is wonderful. The venue is perfect. The contract is signed. And then a wire transfer of fifteen thousand dollars to a foreign bank account, on a Wednesday, with no recourse.

Most couples sit on a perfectly good vendor for weeks rather than complete that transfer. Some give up entirely and book a resort. Others send the wire and spend the next nine months in a low background hum of "did I just send fifteen thousand dollars to a stranger."

Cordelia replaces the wire transfer with something different.

Funds move only when milestones do.

What changes

A booking, with and without an Escrow Vault.

Without escrow

You wire money. You hope.

The full deposit lands in the vendor's account on day one. The vendor has the money. You have a PDF contract you can't enforce across borders.

If the vendor disappears, the venue cancels, or the work isn't delivered, your only recourse is a lawsuit in a foreign jurisdiction in a language you may not speak.

Most disputes never even get filed. The cost of recovery exceeds the loss.

With the Cordelia Vault

You fund the Vault. The Vault holds.

The deposit lands in a regulated escrow account. Cordelia is the trustee. The vendor sees the funds are committed but cannot touch them.

Each release is tied to a specific milestone. Contract signed. Design approved. Final delivery confirmed. If a milestone isn't met, the funds don't move.

If a vendor fails, the Vault holds the line. Replacement funds come from the Vault, not from your pocket again.

How it works

Three parties. One trustee. No private wires.

Every dollar of every Cordelia wedding moves through the same structure. The couple funds the Vault. Cordelia holds it. Vendors are paid out only when triggers are met. Nothing is wired peer-to-peer. No vendor ever sees the couple's bank account information. No couple ever sends money directly to a foreign account.

The Vault Structure

Couple

funds in

→

Cordelia Vault

trustee holds

→

Vendor

paid on milestone

Funds are held in a regulated trust account, segregated from operating funds, with bank-level audit and reconciliation.

The release schedule

Five releases. Each one earned.

A typical Cordelia wedding releases funds across five milestones. The schedule is set at booking, written into the contract, and visible to both sides at every moment. Each release requires a triggering event. Each one is logged with a timestamp.

I

At booking

The deposit lands.

Twenty percent of the total moves into the Vault. The vendor sees the funds are committed and reserves the date. Nothing is paid out yet.

20%

II

At Design Lock-In

The first release.

You approve the full design, the line-item budget, and the confirmed sub-vendor roster. The Vault releases the first slice to the planner and primary vendors so they can begin sourcing.

15%

III

30 to 60 days pre-event

The remaining balance funds the Vault.

You wire the remaining eighty percent into the Vault. Critically: the funds are still in the Vault, not the vendor's account. Triggers determine when each line releases.

+ remaining 80%

IV

Pre-event releases

Sub-vendors are funded for local costs.

Florists buy flowers. Caterers buy ingredients. Rentals are booked. Approximately fifty percent of the remaining balance releases for these working capital needs, against documented invoices.

~50%

V

48 hours post-wedding

Final balance clears.

If the wedding was delivered without a dispute, the remaining balance releases to the planner and vendors. If a dispute is filed within those 48 hours, the funds stay in the Vault until the dispute is resolved.

remaining

Cordelia's commission of 5% is held back from the final release, and only collected on weddings completed without a dispute. The platform is paid only on success.

What if something goes wrong

The Vault is the wall, not the warning.

Wire fraud, vendor disappearance, no-shows on the wedding day. These are the scenarios couples lose sleep over. The Vault doesn't just track milestones. It's the wall that catches money when something fails.

Vendor doesn't deliver

Cordelia replaces from the regional bench within 48 hours, or refunds the line.

Because the funds are in the Vault and not in the failed vendor's account, replacement is a release decision Cordelia controls. The cost of replacement comes from the Vault, not from your pocket again.

Wedding cancelled by force majeure

The Vault refunds what hasn't already been spent.

If the wedding cannot proceed (natural disaster, government restriction, family emergency), the Vault returns the unreleased portion of funds. Already-released sub-vendors keep what they earned. The unspent balance comes back to you, not to the platform.

Dispute filed post-wedding

The final release is held until the dispute resolves.

If you flag an issue within 48 hours of the wedding, Cordelia pauses the final release and opens a dispute resolution process with the Market Manager. Funds don't move until both sides reach an agreement or Cordelia's mediation determines the outcome.

The numbers

Built on regulated rails. Audited like a bank.

100%

of funds held in trust

5

milestone-triggered releases

48 hr

post-wedding hold window

The Cordelia Vault is built on Stripe Connect plus a dedicated trust account with US-regulated escrow infrastructure. Funds are segregated from operating funds, audited monthly, and never commingled. Cordelia cannot touch escrow funds for operating expenses. The structure is regulatory, not just contractual.

Your money never sits in a stranger's account.

The wire transfer is the moment everyone freezes.

A booking, with and without an Escrow Vault.

You wire money. You hope.

You fund the Vault. The Vault holds.

Three parties. One trustee. No private wires.

Five releases. Each one earned.

The deposit lands.

The first release.

The remaining balance funds the Vault.

Sub-vendors are funded for local costs.

Final balance clears.

The Vault is the wall, not the warning.

Cordelia replaces from the regional bench within 48 hours, or refunds the line.

The Vault refunds what hasn't already been spent.

The final release is held until the dispute resolves.

Built on regulated rails. Audited like a bank.

Ready to plan with money that's protected?

Your money never sits in a stranger's account.

The wire transfer is the moment everyone freezes.

A booking, with and without an Escrow Vault.

You wire money. You hope.

You fund the Vault. The Vault holds.

Three parties. One trustee. No private wires.

Five releases. Each one earned.

The deposit lands.

The first release.

The remaining balance funds the Vault.

Sub-vendors are funded for local costs.

Final balance clears.

The Vault is the wall, not the warning.

Cordelia replaces from the regional bench within 48 hours, or refunds the line.

The Vault refunds what hasn't already been spent.

The final release is held until the dispute resolves.

Built on regulated rails. Audited like a bank.

The Verified Passport

How a Cordelia wedding actually works

Ready to plan with money that's protected?