The agency paying a developer who wants USDC: a Storspay Exchange walkthrough
A design or software agency with a contractor in Accra, Lagos or Nairobi who asks to be paid in USDC — the recipient type to add, the screening, the cost, and why the contractor may still prefer mobile money.
Read this guide in Français
The short answer. Add the contractor as a “Wallet address” recipient in Run Payroll, pay from your US dollar balance (converted at 0.75% all-in) or from USDC you already hold, and the transfer arrives in minutes for about two cents on Base.
Why the contractor asks
Some developers hold USDC because their other clients pay that way, because they keep savings in dollars, or because they pay their own subcontractors from it. It is a reasonable request from a business you trust, and it should not force you into a personal wallet or a P2P app.
The three-minute setup
Team Members → Add recipient → Wallet address → USDC on Base → paste the address. Storspay checks the format, screens the address and saves it with a label, like a bank account. The first send to a new address waits 30 minutes; every send is confirmed with a one-time code.
What it costs you
From a USDC balance: the network fee only, about US$0.02. From a dollar or euro balance: 0.75% all-in to convert, then the network fee. Either way it is shown before you confirm and appears in Payroll History with the transaction reference.
When to pay local currency instead
If the contractor wants cedis, naira or shillings in their own account, pay that: 2% all-in, same business day, mobile money in minutes, and they never touch digital dollars. The point of Exchange is to say yes to whichever they ask for.
How it works, in four steps
- Apply once. A verified business on a paid Storspay plan applies from the Exchange tab: a few questions about what it will trade and why, a one-time identity check for a director, the wallets it plans to use. Reply within one business day.
- Receive or convert. A client sends USDT or USDC to the address in your business name, or you convert dollars or euros from your balance at 0.75% all-in.
- Trade or hold. Keep the balance, convert between USDC and USDT at 0.25%, or trade with other verified businesses on the P2P market — taker 0.5%, makers free, settled the instant the buyer confirms.
- Cash out or send. Pay your local bank or mobile money the same business day at 2% all-in, or send to any wallet address for the network fee only.
What it costs
| Step | Fee |
|---|---|
| Receive USDC or USDT | Free |
| P2P market — taker | 0.5% (makers free) |
| Convert US dollars or euros ⇄ USDC or USDT | 0.75% all-in |
| Convert USDC ⇄ USDT | 0.25% |
| Send to a wallet address | Network fee only |
| Cash out to a local bank or mobile money | 2% all-in (1% · min US$2 to India, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand) |
Who this is for — and who it is not for
Businesses, and a sole trader counts: every movement is a business transaction with an invoice, a contract or work delivered. Traders are welcome as businesses and should expect what the page says plainly — verified counterparties, instant settlement and a cash-out to their own business account, not the tightest spread on the internet. Personal accounts, gifts and family transfers are not what this is.
Keep your invoices and statements for your records and ask a local accountant how income in digital dollars is taxed where you live.
Read next
- Storspay Exchange — hold, convert and trade digital dollars
- Digital dollars for African businesses
- Storspay Exchange vs P2P exchange apps
- Can a freelancer hold USD, EUR, GBP or CAD?
Storspay Exchange is in early access — apply from the Exchange page. Fees and availability are as published there on the day you read this.
See your own corridor number. What your team receives, what Storspay costs, what you keep — no sign-up.
Open the calculator →