Shakepay Terms of Use
Shakepay Inc. (“we”, “us”, “our” or “Shakepay” in this agreement) is a Canadian federal corporation that is headquartered in Montreal and registered with the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (“FINTRAC”) as a virtual currency dealer, and as money transfer service provider (#M17065696). We are also registered in Quebec with the Autorité des Marchés Financiers (“AMF”) (#904007).
Shakepay provides to its customers, people such as yourself ("you" or "your") who enter into this agreement, a suite of services described herein (collectively, the “Services”). The Services include: (i) a platform to buy and sell Bitcoin and certain other virtual currencies ("Digital Currencies”); (ii) a money transfer service and may undertake other related business activities for you; and (iii) the linking of our Services to a prepaid card (the “Shakepay Card”) issued by a bank (the “Issuer”).
We provide Services through our website (https://shakepay.com), mobile app, Shakepay Card, and other channels/platforms, including our social media accounts, our blogs and customer support tools, which we collectively refer to as the “Shakepay Platform”. Additional Services may be offered to you through the Shakepay Platform from time to time, which may be subject to additional terms and conditions in addition to this agreement. Shakepay reserves the right to fulfill some or all of its obligations under this agreement through one or many third parties, and the use of “Shakepay” throughout this agreement may include these third parties.
When you sign up for the Services, you will be asked to create unique login credentials that will allow you to access an account that will serve as your point of access to the Services (the “Account”). You shall not allow any third party to use your Account and you shall not use your Account for the benefit of any third party. You must not share your Account credentials with anyone else. You are responsible for all transactions occurring through your Account credentials.
We buy and sell Digital Currencies but we do not run or control any Digital Currency blockchain networks. This means that although we provide a robust platform used by hundreds of thousands of Canadians, there are a number of aspects of Digital Currencies that can pose risks to our customers and users (collectively, “customers”) and that are beyond Shakepay's control. We encourage you to carefully read this agreement, the Shakepay website (https://shakepay.com), and learn about Digital Currencies before beginning to buy or sell through the Shakepay Platform.
The Shakepay Card is optional and may be available in physical and virtual versions. The Shakepay Card is issue by the Issuer, not by Shakepay. In order to obtain the Shakepay Card, you may be asked to provide additional information in order for Shakepay and the Issuer to prevent money laundering, fraud and other risks. Your use of the Shakepay Card is also subject to a separate agreement between you and the Issuer (the “Cardholder Agreement”). You shall comply with the terms of the Cardholder Agreement. You consent to Shakepay obtaining and sending information concerning your Shakepay Card to, from and among you, Shakepay and the Issuer.
Our role with respect to the Shakepay Card is to serve as a conduit of information to, from and among you, the Issuer and Shakepay. Transactions made with the Shakepay Card will be listed on your Account. Certain other information about your Shakepay Card may also be available on your Account, including the Shakepay Card balance and your transaction history.
As and when you use your Shakepay Card, you hereby authorize Shakepay to deduct the value of each such Shakepay Card transaction and any related fees or taxes, if any, from your available Canadian dollar balance. Where your Account does not hold sufficient Canadian dollars, your Shakepay Card transaction shall not go through. If, in a rare occurrence, the Shakepay Card transaction should go through when you do not have the sufficient Canadian dollar balance, you hereby authorize us to purchase from you the amount of Digital Currency, that is equivalent to the Canadian dollar value of the Shakepay Card transaction. The Digital Currency will be purchased from you at the then applicable price posted on the Account, to cover the cost of your Shakepay Card transaction, plus any related fees or any of your liability hereunder. If your Account lacks sufficient Digital Currency to cover such a Shakepay Card transaction, you shall immediately settle to us the amount of the shortfall, plus any related fees or any of your liability hereunder, without demand or delay.
You can load Canadian dollars to your Shakepay Card through the methods listed on the Shakepay Platform, as they are modified from time to time. Shakepay is not responsible for the Canadian dollars loaded on your Shakepay Card, the Issuer carries that responsibility under your Cardholder Agreement.
If you complete a Shakepay Card transaction in a foreign currency, you agree that you will be charged a foreign transaction fee, as indicated in the Cardholder Agreement and /or the Shakepay Platform. All foreign currencies will be converted to Canadian dollars.
You are liable for all transactions initiated using your Shakepay Card. Without limitation, in the event that Shakepay becomes liable to the Issuer for any transaction or other liability arising from or related to your Shakepay Card, you shall indemnify and hold us harmless for such amounts.
If you lose your Shakepay Card or have a reason to believe that someone has or may attempt to make an unauthorized transaction with your Shakepay Card, you must IMMEDIATELY cancel your Shakepay Card by calling our automated phone system at 1-855-574-2539 seven (7) days a week, twenty-four (24) hours a day, or suspend or freeze your Shakepay Card in the Shakepay Platform. The cancellation, suspension or freezing of your Shakepay Card may take time to come into effect and you shall remain liable for transactions occurring on your Shakepay Card during such time. If the Shakepay Card is cancelled, suspended or frozen for any reason, the funds loaded to your Shakepay Card will be available in your Account less any liabilities you may have to us or the Issuer.
You may not use the Shakepay Card for any illegal purpose. We reserve the right to instruct the Issuer to suspend transactions on your Shakepay Card, cancel, suspend or freeze your Shakepay Card or otherwise limit the size or type of transactions available through the Shakepay Card.
You may only sign up for and use the Shakepay Platform if you meet the following qualifications as an individual:
Canadian resident, physically located in Canada; and,
at least 18 years of age; and,
not a person listed on any sanctions list in Canada or any other country; and,
not a "Politically Exposed Person" as defined in Canadian anti-money laundering/anti-terrorist-financing legislation; and,
intend to use the Shakepay Platform for your own use and not on behalf of, or as agent to, any other person or entity; and,
meet Shakepay’s anti-money laundering standards applied at our sole discretion.
If you are entering into this agreement on behalf of a corporation or other entity, you acknowledge that you have been provided with the applicable qualifications and that your corporation (or other entity) satisfies the stated qualifications, including:
Canadian-registered entity in good standing; and,
the directors are not Politically Exposed Persons; and,
you intend to use the Shakepay Platform for your own use and not on behalf of another person or entity; and,
meeting Shakepay’s anti-money laundering standards.
We take our regulatory obligations seriously. If at any time you no longer meet the qualifications enumerated in this clause then you shall cease using the Shakepay Platform and inform us promptly. Furthermore, by entering into this agreement you are consenting to Shakepay making inquiries with third parties, including credit bureaus, to verify the information that you supply as part of opening an Account.
For clarity, persons residing in the U.S., Europe, Asia or any place other than Canada are not permitted to use the Services.
The Shakepay Card may be used outside of Canada, in countries where it is not restricted by law, that are not on any sanctions list in Canada, and that are not restricted by us or the Issuer, to our sole discretion.
Shakepay is committed to the privacy of customers but as a regulated business we may be required to share your personal information with FINTRAC and other regulatory agencies or law enforcement. We may also disclose your personal information to credit bureaus, anti-money laundering service providers, or other identity verification partners as part of opening your Account or for periodic checks to ensure that we have accurate information about you. We may also disclose your personal information to financial institutions or other financial intermediaries. Our commitment to privacy is further explained in the Shakepay Privacy Policy available at: www.shakepay.com/legal/privacy, which forms part of this agreement.
You shall at all times:
comply at all times with this agreement; and,
provide honest and accurate information regarding your Account; and,
only use the Shakepay Platform for lawful purposes; and,
be respectful and courteous, and avoid any threats, abuse, or harassment to Shakepay staff, and especially to our customer service team members who do their best every day to ensure a great experience; and,
be respectful and courteous, and avoid any threats, abuse, or harassment to all other Shakepay users or individuals or groups interacting with the Shakepay Platform; and,
not upload content or post a comment on the Shakepay Platform that is inappropriate; and,
ensure that you understand how to handle Digital Currencies and the Shakepay Card (if applicable) within and outside of the Shakepay Platform; and,
ensure that you understand the content and legal implications of the Cardholder Agreement, if applicable; and,
comply at all times with the Cardholder Agreement, if applicable; and,
move your Digital Currency to private keys that are personal to you as promptly as possible after purchasing Digital Currency from Shakepay.
You agree to immediately pay the stated price when you engage in transactions using the Shakepay Platform. Shakepay reserves the right to amend its pricing at any time without prior notice to you.
We reserve the right to set the payment methods that we shall accept from you, and any applicable limits or rules for particular payment methods, such as daily e-Transfer limits or other volume/purchase limits, without prior notice. We do not accept cheques, foreign currencies, direct deposits or bank drafts, and may be required for legal or any other reasons to refuse payments.
Title to all Digital Currency that you purchase from Shakepay is transferred to you immediately following the purchase transaction. Shakepay nonetheless reserves the right to suspend a transaction, hold fiat or Digital Currency, suspend Account or Shakepay Card transactions in order to protect Shakepay, other users, any third party, the Issuer and yourself from actual or potential legal, security, financial, reputational or any other risk.
There are many risks associated with Digital Currency, some of which are independent of the Shakepay Platform (and that are present in other Digital Currency business models), for which Shakepay will not be responsible and will not have any liability for, including the following "Blockchain Risks":
BLOCKCHAIN TRANSACTIONS ARE FINAL, IRREVERSIBLE AND IRRECUPERABLE. You must be careful to transfer Digital Currency from the Shakepay Platform to your own wallet, and not to untrustworthy businesses or to people you do not personally know. Once transferred out of the Shakepay Platform, Shakepay has no mean whatsoever to access or recuperate in any way your Digital Currency.
You are responsible for ensuring that any Digital Currency or money transfers that you conduct are with a trustworthy person or business. Any Digital Currency or money transfer outside the Shakepay Platform or to another Shakepay customer inside the Shakepay Platform is final, irreversible and irrecuperable.
You are responsible for ensuring that any Digital Currency or money transfers that you conduct are with the correct person or business. Shakepay encourages you to confirm the recipient’s Shakepay username, phone number and email address before conducting a transfer.
You are responsible for securing your device, email account, phone number, and other methods of communication that you use with the Shakepay Platform.
Blockchain technology is relatively new and constantly changing. Shakepay did not invent the Digital Currencies that it makes available for purchase and sale, and it does not develop, manage, or control them, and therefore it is possible that you may experience losses due to technical issues with specific blockchains that are beyond Shakepay's control, including the possibility that a blockchain could be compromised or fail. Shakepay’s role is limited to purchasing and selling Digital Currencies.
Blockchain addresses provided by the Shakepay Platform may change and you should always confirm the address by using the Shakepay Platform immediately before undertaking any blockchain transaction.
There are some Digital Currencies that have address formats that overlap (e.g. Bitcoin and certain Bitcoin forks). If you send a different Digital Currency to a Shakepay address not intended for that Digital Currency, then it will result in a permanent loss because the other Digital Currency is not supported. Always take care when conducting Digital Currency transactions, and if you are in doubt, you should contact Shakepay customer support to receive technical support about blockchains and address formats.
At peak times, or during a period of instability in a blockchain network, it may not be possible to move your Digital Currency to private keys that are personal to you as fast as is typical.
Shakepay’s blockchain nodes may become temporarily unsynchronized and introduce delays. Although we endeavour to minimize downtime, blockchain node software changes often and may not be stable. This is outside of the control of Shakepay.
Shakepay attempts to provide support for popular Digital Currencies (e.g. Bitcoin and Ethereum) but does not guarantee that it will continue to support any particular Digital Currency. In the event that we are forced to disable or remove a Digital Currency we will attempt to provide notice in advance.
It is possible that you may experience a technical error while using the Shakepay Platform. If you experience such an error you should report the anomaly to customer support rather than taking action. We endeavour to fix all errors on a timely basis but will not accept responsibility for your actions based on user interface errors.
Blockchain developers occasionally develop new blockchains that split off from the current version (a "Fork") and it is likely that Shakepay will not support the Fork (typically, in favour of the more popular current version). To help mitigate this risk, you should move your Digital Currency to private keys that are personal to you, in advance of the Fork launching. Moving your Digital Currency to private keys that are personal to you will allow you to use and interact with any alternative Fork version of a Digital Currency that Shakepay does not support.
You acknowledge that if you choose to conduct a Digital Currency or money transfer using the Shakepay Platform (“shakepay a friend”) then it will be irreversible if it is sent to a valid Shakepay username, and there may be additional rules that apply to such Digital Currency or money transfers, including daily limits.
The Shakepay Platform is subject to stringent requirements, including anti-money laundering laws. As part of our requirements under Canadian law and our commitment to the integrity of Canada’s financial system, it might be necessary for Shakepay to temporarily pause or permanently terminate activities involving your Account.
We may place a freeze on your Account (“Account Freeze”) if we are required to do so as part of our regulatory requirements (e.g. FINTRAC or the AMF), if we believe your Account or your use of the Services does not comply with this agreement, if we believe your Account or your use of the Services exposes us, the Issuer, yourself, another user or third party to excessive financial, security, legal, reputational or any other risk, or if we are required to do so as part of any other legal requirement. We may communicate with you to resolve any Account Freeze, which may include requesting documentation or further information (to the extent that we are permitted by law to do so). If we do not communicate with you and you realize your Account has been frozen, it is your responsibility to reach out to our support team.
In some circumstances, we may continue an Account Freeze for days or weeks, and ultimately may be required to terminate your Account and return your assets to you if we suspect that activities associated with your Account may be contrary to Canadian law, or damaging to Shakepay or another person. Shakepay reserves the right to impose an Account Freeze or terminate your Account in its sole discretion and your sole remedy for such an Account Freeze or termination shall be the return of your assets, subject to any law that requires us to do otherwise.
The Shakepay Platform enables you to buy and sell Digital Currency but it is not intended to be a storage facility for your Digital Currency.
Shakepay strongly believes that everyone should control their Digital Currencies. The Shakepay Platform provides convenient functionality for you to initiate a transaction on a blockchain ("Blockchain Transaction") to move Digital Currency and you agree to use this functionality promptly, and no later than 28 days after buying Digital Currency from Shakepay.
When conducting a Blockchain Transaction, you may experience a delay caused by the blockchain that you are interacting with and/or delays caused by the technical systems that make up the Shakepay Platform. Any Blockchain Transaction that you initiate will result in an immediate change in your Shakepay Account balance but the transaction will take some time to become finalized on the applicable blockchain (i.e. incorporated into a block in a blockchain), and cannot be cancelled in the interim. It is possible that for technical or business reasons (e.g. network congestion on a blockchain), despite Shakepay’s usual practice of rebroadcasting, a blockchain transaction may not become finalized (i.e incorporated into a block on the respective blockchain), and eventually your Shakepay Account will reflect the failure of the transaction. In unusual circumstances it could take 24-48 hours for a failed transaction to be displayed properly within the Shakepay Platform.
If you experience unusual or frustrating delays, you should contact Shakepay's customer support team for assistance.
Once you have transferred your Digital Currency off of the Shakepay Platform, or to another Shakepay customer, we are not responsible for it in any way. All transactions of Digital Currency off of the Shakepay Platform, or to another Shakepay customer, are final, irreversible and irrecuperable.
Although we publish information about approximate times for different payment methods, Shakepay does not guarantee the amount of time and specifically disclaims any liability related to delays. Published information about payment methods is approximate, and delays often occur in Canada's fiat payment methods. Shakepay strongly recommends making fiat or Digital Currency transfers to us well in advance of when you intend to use our Services, including to buying and selling Digital Currencies, placing an Order (as defined below) and using the Shakepay Card.
The Shakepay Platform may be used to place an order to buy or sell at a future price (an “Order”). Orders use the price set by Shakepay (which is in turn informed by the current market conditions for Digital Currencies) and not on any particular index. If you buy then we shall make use of the current price at which we sell, and if you sell then we shall make use of the current price at which we buy.
Due to rapid changes in prices on the Shakepay Platform, it is possible that your Order may be fulfilled at a better price than what you have set or, less commonly, your Order may not be fulfilled even though the price available on the Shakepay Platform may have briefly met or surpassed the price that you set. Shakepay does not guarantee that an Order will be fulfilled but shall attempt to fulfill your Order. We shall not under any circumstances be liable for any failure to achieve a certain price or the failure to fulfill any particular Order.
Shakepay may offer you the opportunity to earn rewards for activities such as referring other people to the Shakepay Platform or using the Shakepay Card. Shakepay’s reward offers and applicable terms are made available to you separately at: https://legal.shakepay.com/rewards or in the Shakepay Platform. Shakepay reserves the right at any time to modify, suspend or cancel the rewards.
The Shakepay Platform is licensed to you on a non-transferrable, non-sublicensable, worldwide-basis, so that you may use the Shakepay Platform and make use of the intellectual property of which it is composed, including all copyrighted and trademarked works (collectively, “Works”), provided that you do so in accordance with this agreement and do not reproduce any of the Works outside of the Shakepay Platform. Some trademarks displayed on the Shakepay Platform, such as those of app stores or certain blockchain product names may belong to third parties and are not licensed to you.
If you suggest a feature or change to the Shakepay Platform, or if you submit to us any marketing material (a "Suggestion") then you agree that we may make use of the Suggestion and disclaim any intellectual property rights, including any moral rights, to any resulting intellectual property.
Due to the nature of the products that we sell, Shakepay cannot and does not accept returns or offer refunds. All sales are final.
As a part of being able to offer competitive pricing, we cannot offer a warranty. The Shakepay Platform is provided to you on an "as-is" basis without warranty of any kind, to the maximum degree permitted by law, and this disclaimer of warranty shall apply even if you have informed us of your special circumstances. Furthermore, the Shakepay website and any customer service/technical support that Shakepay offers to you shall also be without warranty of any kind.
It is necessary that Shakepay’s liability to you be limited as we would otherwise need to charge higher prices. Accordingly, Shakepay’s liability for any claim, loss (including lost profits, gains, or revenue), damage, or consequence (“Claim”) shall be limited to no more than $500 CAD (in aggregate), and this limitation of liability shall apply no matter the cause of action, reason for loss, nature of damages, or any other factor. But, if your Claim relates to a risk enumerated in the section of this agreement titled “Risks you Assume”, which Shakepay does not accept liability or responsibility for, then, notwithstanding any term of this agreement, Shakepay’s liability for that Claim shall be limited to a maximum of $50 CAD (in aggregate). As this agreement does not permit third-party purchases, Shakepay’s liability to you insofar as it involves a third-party shall be limited to $0. Shakepay shall not be liable for any punitive damages, consequential costs, loss of goodwill, loss of reputation, or loss of opportunity, under any circumstances.
Subject to applicable law and subject to your liabilities to us, the Issuer, or under this agreement or your use of the Services, the limitations of liability in this agreement shall not serve to prevent us from returning to you any of your Digital Currencies or other balances in your Account with us, which may exceed the caps set out above.
You will defend, indemnify and hold harmless Shakepay, its parents, affiliates, licensors, suppliers, Issuer, contractors and their respective shareholders, directors and officers, assigns, and successors-in-interest from and against any and all liabilities, damages, losses, claims, demands, actions, causes of action and costs (including, without limitation, attorneys’ fees and expenses) arising out of or resulting from: (i) your failure to comply with this agreement; (ii) your use of the Services, or any part of them; (iii) your alleged or actual negligent or willful acts or omissions, or those of your agents or employees; (iv) any taxes or other liabilities related to any product or service that you may provide or sell; (v) your operation of a business; (vi) any activity in or through your Account; (vii) any claim by any third party that relates to you; (viii) any costs that Shakepay incurs in responding to a subpoena or other court order related to you or a third party with whom you have any relationship; (ix) any termination or suspension of your access to the Services; and (x) any third party’s use of your Account or your Services.
You may not amend this agreement. We may amend this agreement at any time by (a) posting a revised version of this agreement on the Shakepay Platform, or (b) sending you information regarding any such amendment by email or by a notice in the Shakepay Platform. The revised agreement will become effective and apply to you within 15 days of the email or notice containing information regarding the updated agreement, or the date of its publication on the Shakepay Platform, whichever comes first. If you do not agree to an amendment to this agreement then your sole remedy shall be to discontinue use of the Shakepay Platform.
We may assign this agreement (without notice to you) as part of the sale of all or substantially all of our business. In any other case, we may assign this agreement on 30 days notice. You are not permitted to assign this agreement and any assignment of this agreement by you is void ab initio.
Any disputes related to this agreement shall be heard exclusively in the courts of the City of Montreal, Quebec, and the law of the Province of Quebec shall apply.
Either party may terminate this agreement for any reason or for no reason without notice and without further liability. Subject to applicable laws that require us to do otherwise and any liabilities you may have to us or an Issuer, Shakepay shall transfer your Digital Currency assets and Account fiat balance to you, and you shall be obligated to pay any amounts owed to Shakepay for services received prior to termination.
This is the entire agreement between Shakepay and you. This agreement supersedes any other understandings or contracts, and you represent that in entering into this agreement you have not relied on any representations made by Shakepay.
