Marketplace Overview

RedCarpetHQ's marketplace enables peer-to-peer trading of campaign tokens through an escrow-based system.

How the Marketplace Works

Escrow-Based Trading

Unlike traditional order books, RedCarpetHQ uses an escrow system:

Sellers:
1. Create sell offer
2. Tokens locked in Market contract
3. Set price per token
4. Wait for buyer

Buyers:
1. Browse available offers
2. Choose offer to fill
3. Send USDC to Market contract
4. Receive tokens instantly

Atomic Swaps:

  • Partial fills allowed (by default)

  • Instant settlement

  • No counterparty risk

    • Why Escrow?

    Benefits:

  • ✅ Funds always safe

  • ✅ No front-running

  • ✅ Simple to understand

  • ✅ Gas-efficient

  • ✅ No MEV exploitation

    • vs. Order Book:

  • ❌ Order books complex

  • ❌ Front-running risk

  • ❌ High gas costs

  • ❌ Requires matching engine

    • Offer Types

    Sell Offers

    Creating a Sell Offer:

    1. Approve Tokens
    ``
    Token: FRONTIER
    Amount: 1,000 tokens
    Approve: Market contract
    `

    2. Create Offer
    `
    Type: SELL
    Token Amount: 1,000 tokens
    Price Per Token: $1.05
    Total Value: $1,050
    `

    3. Tokens Escrowed
    `
    From: Your wallet
    To: Market contract
    Status: Locked until filled or cancelled
    `

    Offer Details:
    `
    Offer ID: #12345
    Type: SELL
    Token: FRONTIER (0x123...)
    Amount: 1,000 tokens
    Price: $1.05 per token
    Total: $1,050 USDC
    Creator: 0x456...
    Created: 2025-02-15 10:30:00 UTC
    Status: OPEN
    `

    Buy Offers

    Creating a Buy Offer:

    1. Approve USDC
    `
    Amount: $1,050 USDC
    Approve: Market contract
    `

    2. Create Offer
    `
    Type: BUY
    Token Amount: 1,000 tokens
    Price Per Token: $1.00
    Total Cost: $1,000 USDC
    `

    3. USDC Escrowed
    `
    From: Your wallet
    To: Market contract
    Status: Locked until filled or cancelled
    `

    Offer Details:
    `
    Offer ID: #12346
    Type: BUY
    Token: FRONTIER (0x123...)
    Amount: 1,000 tokens
    Price: $1.00 per token
    Total: $1,000 USDC
    Creator: 0x789...
    Created: 2025-02-15 11:00:00 UTC
    Status: OPEN
    `

    Trading Process

    Selling Tokens

    Step-by-Step:

    1. Check Current Market

  • View existing buy offers

  • Check price levels

  • Assess demand

    • 2. Choose Strategy

  • Option A: Fill existing buy offer (instant)

  • Option B: Create sell offer (wait for buyer)

    • 3. Create Sell Offer
    `
    Navigate: Marketplace → Create Offer
    Select: SELL
    Token: [Select your token]
    Amount: 1,000 tokens
    Price: $1.05 per token
    Review: Total = $1,050
    Approve: Token spending
    Confirm: Create offer transaction
    `

    4. Wait for Buyer

  • Offer appears in marketplace

  • Tokens locked in escrow

  • Receive notification when filled

    • 5. Receive Payment
    `
    Offer filled by: 0xABC...
    Tokens sent: 1,000 FRONTIER
    USDC received: $1,023.75 (after 2.5% fee)
    Fee paid: $26.25
    Transaction: 0xDEF...
    `

    Buying Tokens

    Step-by-Step:

    1. Browse Marketplace

  • View available sell offers

  • Compare prices

  • Check offer sizes

    • 2. Choose Strategy

  • Option A: Fill existing sell offer (instant)

  • Option B: Create buy offer (wait for seller)

    • 3. Fill Sell Offer
    `
    Navigate: Marketplace → Browse Offers
    Filter: SELL offers
    Select: Offer #12345
    Amount: 1,000 tokens @ $1.05
    Total Cost: $1,050 USDC
    Approve: USDC spending
    Confirm: Fill offer transaction
    `

    4. Receive Tokens
    `
    Offer filled: #12345
    USDC sent: $1,050
    Tokens received: 1,000 FRONTIER
    Fee paid: $26.25 (included in price)
    Transaction: 0xGHI...
    `

    Fees & Costs

    Trading Fee Structure

    Fee Rate: 2.5%

    Example Trade:
    `
    Trade Value: $1,000
    Fee: $25 (2.5%)

    Seller receives: $975
    Buyer pays: $1,000
    Fee collected: $25
    `

    Fee Distribution:
    `
    $25 total fee:
    ├─ $10 → Protocol Treasury (40%)
    ├─ $10 → Trading Contest (40%)
    ├─ $2.50 → UnifiedVault (10%)
    └─ $2.50 → Producer (10%)
    `

    Gas Costs

    Estimated Gas:
    `
    Create Offer: ~200,000 gas
    Fill Offer: ~200,000 gas
    Cancel Offer: ~50,000 gas

    At 50 gwei:
    Create: ~$10
    Fill: ~$10
    Cancel: ~$2.50
    `

    Fee Whitelist

    Some addresses may be fee-exempt:

  • Protocol operations

  • Liquidity providers

  • Special partnerships

    • Check Status:
    `
    Your address: 0x123...
    Fee exempt: No
    Fee rate: 2.5%
    `

    Offer Management

    Viewing Your Offers

    Active Offers:
    `
    Offer #12345 - SELL
    Token: FRONTIER
    Amount: 1,000 tokens
    Price: $1.05
    Status: OPEN
    Created: 2 hours ago
    Actions: [Cancel] [View Details]
    `

    Filled Offers:
    `
    Offer #12340 - SELL
    Token: FRONTIER
    Amount: 500 tokens
    Price: $1.00
    Status: FILLED
    Filled: 1 day ago
    Filled by: 0xABC...
    `

    Cancelled Offers:
    `
    Offer #12335 - BUY
    Token: FRONTIER
    Amount: 2,000 tokens
    Price: $0.95
    Status: CANCELLED
    Cancelled: 3 days ago
    `

    Cancelling Offers

    When to Cancel:

  • Price changed

  • Don't want to trade anymore

  • Created wrong amount

  • Need funds back

    • Process:
    1. Navigate to "My Offers"
    2. Find offer to cancel
    3. Click "Cancel"
    4. Confirm transaction
    5. Funds returned immediately

    Effect:
    `
    Offer #12345 cancelled
    Status: CANCELLED
    Tokens returned: 1,000 FRONTIER
    To: Your wallet
    Transaction: 0xJKL...
    `

    Modifying Offers

    Cannot Modify:

  • ❌ Price

  • ❌ Amount

  • ❌ Token

    • Must:
    1. Cancel existing offer
    2. Create new offer
    3. Pay gas twice

    Tip: Double-check before creating!

    Market Information

    Price Discovery

    VWAP Oracle:
    `
    Current VWAP: $1.02
    Last Update: 5 minutes ago
    24h High: $1.12
    24h Low: $0.95
    24h Volume: $15,000
    `

    Recent Trades:
    `
    Trade #1: 500 tokens @ $1.05 (2 min ago)
    Trade #2: 1,000 tokens @ $1.00 (15 min ago)
    Trade #3: 250 tokens @ $1.08 (1 hour ago)
    `

    Order Book View

    Sell Offers (Ask):
    `
    Price | Amount | Total
    ---------|-------------|--------
    $1.10 | 500 tokens | $550
    $1.08 | 1,000 tokens| $1,080
    $1.05 | 2,000 tokens| $2,100
    `

    Buy Offers (Bid):
    `
    Price | Amount | Total
    ---------|-------------|--------
    $1.00 | 1,500 tokens| $1,500
    $0.98 | 1,000 tokens| $980
    $0.95 | 3,000 tokens| $2,850
    `

    Spread:
    `
    Best Ask: $1.05
    Best Bid: $1.00
    Spread: $0.05 (5%)
    `

    Market Depth

    Liquidity Analysis:
    `
    Total Sell Offers: 15 offers, 10,000 tokens
    Total Buy Offers: 12 offers, $8,500 USDC
    Market Depth: Moderate
    Slippage Risk: Low for <500 tokens
    `

    Trading Strategies

    For Sellers

    Market Order (Instant):

  • Fill existing buy offer

  • Immediate execution

  • Accept current price

  • Best for: Quick exit

    • Limit Order (Wait):

  • Create sell offer above market

  • Wait for buyer

  • Get desired price

  • Best for: Patient sellers

    • Example:
    `
    Current best bid: $1.00
    Your strategy: Create sell offer @ $1.05
    Reasoning: Willing to wait for 5% premium
    Risk: May not fill if price drops
    `

    For Buyers

    Market Order (Instant):

  • Fill existing sell offer

  • Immediate execution

  • Pay current price

  • Best for: Quick entry

    • Limit Order (Wait):

  • Create buy offer below market

  • Wait for seller

  • Get desired price

  • Best for: Patient buyers

    • Example:
    `
    Current best ask: $1.05
    Your strategy: Create buy offer @ $1.00
    Reasoning: Willing to wait for 5% discount
    Risk: May not fill if price rises
    `

    Advanced Strategies

    Arbitrage:
    `
    If: Price on RedCarpet < Price elsewhere
    Then: Buy on RedCarpet, sell elsewhere
    Profit: Price difference - fees - gas

    Note: Requires external liquidity
    `

    Market Making:
    `
    Create buy offer: $1.00
    Create sell offer: $1.05
    Profit: $0.05 spread (if both fill)
    Risk: Price moves against you
    `

    Dollar Cost Averaging:
    `
    Buy $100 every week
    Regardless of price
    Average out volatility
    Long-term strategy
    ``

    Safety & Best Practices

    Before Trading

    Verify:

  • ✅ Correct token address

  • ✅ Reasonable price

  • ✅ Sufficient liquidity

  • ✅ Gas fees acceptable

    • Check:

  • ✅ Your wallet balance

  • ✅ Approval amounts

  • ✅ Offer details

  • ✅ Transaction preview

    • During Trading

    Be Careful:

  • ⚠️ Double-check amounts

  • ⚠️ Verify prices

  • ⚠️ Confirm token address

  • ⚠️ Review transaction

    • Avoid:

  • ❌ Trading while distracted

  • ❌ Panic selling

  • ❌ FOMO buying

  • ❌ Ignoring fees

    • After Trading

    Confirm:

  • ✅ Transaction succeeded

  • ✅ Tokens/USDC received

  • ✅ Correct amounts

  • ✅ Update records

    • Record:

  • Transaction hash

  • Trade price

  • Amounts

  • Fees paid

  • Date/time

    • Troubleshooting

    Common Issues

    "Insufficient Balance"

  • Check token/USDC balance

  • Account for fees

  • Verify approval amount

    • "Offer Not Found"

  • Offer may be filled

  • Offer may be cancelled

  • Refresh page

    • "Price Changed"

  • Offer filled by someone else

  • Create new offer

  • Try different offer

    • Transaction Failed

  • Insufficient gas

  • Approval expired

  • Offer already filled

  • Network congestion

    • Getting Help

    Support Channels:

  • Email: support@redcarpethq.org

  • Docs: Troubleshooting

    • Next Steps:

  • Learn About Creating Offers →

  • Participate in Trading Contests →

  • Understand Risk Management →