The firm offers an instant digital escrow facility, with the identities of both buyer and seller verified electronically and the the funds only released when both sides agree they are happy.
The first case – which Shieldpay said was “proof of concept” – was completed alongside My Home Move’s law firm subsidiary Premier Property Lawyers, with the support of Barclays and the specialist property law regulator the Council for Licensed Conveyancers.
Shieldpay argued that this demonstrated that the stresses of moving day, where buyers are left hanging around for the money to go through, can be eliminated. Instead buyers and sellers can enjoy greater transparency over precisely what is happening with their money at any time, and have certainty over the date of completion.
Shieldpay is fully regulated and authorised by the FCA.
Peter Janes, founder and chief executive officer of Shieldpay, said that the process of sending and receiving sizeable funds has been held back by “unnecessary complexity” for too long.
He added: “Anyone who has ever bought or sold a home will know it’s probably the most important transaction of their lives but unfortunately, it’s also the most painful. They also suffer from a complete lack of transparency over the status of the transaction.”
Rob Gurney, head of legal practice at Premier Property Lawyers, said: “Every link of a chain that uses Shieldpay will bring forward the time at which the top of the chain can collect their keys and, in a chain where all parties were using this type of solution, it would be possible for a whole chain to complete and collect keys early in the morning, reducing stress and inefficiency for all of the individuals and businesses involved.”
