Multisig escrow, in plain language
You have heard the phrase "2-of-3 multisig" twenty times. Here is what it actually does, why it matters, and what changes for you as a buyer.
Multisig escrow is the structural feature that makes the difference between a darknet market you can use safely and one where the platform can disappear with your funds. Both Anubis and Nexus run 2-of-3 multisig as the default contract for new vendor accounts, which is why they are the two markets on this directory.
What 2-of-3 means, mechanically
Three keys exist for every order: yours (the buyer), the vendor's, and the platform's. The funds move out of the escrow contract when any two of those three keys sign the release transaction. In normal flow, you sign to release on order receipt, the vendor counter-signs, the platform stays out. In dispute flow, the platform's key arbitrates and signs alongside whichever party the panel rules in favour of.
The protective property: a platform that wanted to exit-scam would need to convince the majority of vendors to actively co-sign their own losses, which has not happened in the post-Hydra era. With single-sig escrow (where the platform holds the only key), an exit-scam is a single decision by the platform.
What changes for you as a buyer
Almost nothing in the UI. You place orders the same way; the multisig contract is in the background. The only place you notice is on dispute, where the panel's ruling is binding because the platform's third key is the tiebreaker.
Anubis and Nexus specifics
Anubis routes new vendor accounts into multisig by default and gates non-multisig listings to vetted veterans. Nexus offers single-sig as an opt-in fallback for vendors who choose it; in practice the share of single-sig settlement on Nexus is small. Either way, the listings you find on a category page will overwhelmingly be multisig.
