Mutual aid, governed by the group.
When someone in your circle is in crisis, the money is already there. Pooled by members, disbursed by vote, audited by everyone.
The four locked rules.
Every Mutual Aid pool runs on the same governance contract. The platform sets the rules so groups can focus on people in need, not on writing bylaws.
50% must vote.
A disbursement passes only when at least half of the pool's verified members cast a vote. Below 50%, the request stays in queue and re-opens for a second 48-hour window. After two failed quorums, the pool moderators can extend voting eligibility to alternates listed in the pool charter.
48 hours, then it closes.
Every disbursement request runs for exactly 48 hours from open to close. Members get one push, one email, and one in-app reminder. Crisis requests can be flagged "expedited" — same 48-hour window, but pushed to the top of every pool member's feed.
KYC required at $200.
Disbursements at or below $200 do not require formal identity verification — they ride on Gish ID trust score and pool membership. Above $200, the recipient must complete KYC (driver's licence or passport scan, address verification). This is the regulator's line, not ours.
30 days to challenge.
Any pool member can dispute a passed disbursement within 30 days of payout. The dispute pauses no funds — payout proceeds — but triggers a Gish-mediated review. Substantiated fraud claims claw back funds and suspend the recipient's pool membership. Frivolous claims affect the disputer's trust score.
Pool sizes — three tiers.
Bigger pools get more governance affordances. Same locked rules at every size; what changes is what tools the moderators have.
5 – 24 members
- One moderator, one alternate
- Single shared treasury
- No category caps · members vote on everything
- Monthly auto-statement to all members
25 – 99 members
- Up to three moderators
- Optional category buckets (medical / housing / general)
- Per-category disbursement caps
- Weekly digest · monthly statement
100 – 500 members
- Up to seven moderators
- Sub-pools by region or chapter
- Annual independent audit included
- Disbursement caps per quarter
- Public-facing transparency dashboard
How a disbursement happens.
From request to payout, four steps. The whole flow is visible to every pool member in real time.
Request
Member taps "Request from pool" — chooses category, amount, reason, and uploads supporting evidence (medical bill, lease notice, etc.). Visible to all pool members.
Vote
48-hour window opens. Members vote yes / no / abstain. Comments allowed. The current vote tally is live and visible.
Verify
If quorum hits 50% and majority is yes, KYC runs (if amount > $200), payee details verify, funds release from the pool treasury via direct deposit.
Audit
Every disbursement appears in the pool ledger forever. Members can dispute within 30 days. Outcome receipts (where the money landed) post within 7 days.
Common questions.
Why does the platform set the rules instead of the group?
Because most fraud and most disputes in mutual aid come from governance ambiguity — was that vote valid, did enough people see it, what counts as a majority. We picked one tested governance model (50% quorum, 48h, $200 KYC, 30-day dispute) and made it non-negotiable. Groups still control everything that matters: who joins, what categories exist, who moderates, what gets requested. They don't control voting math, because voting math is the load-bearing wall.
Why 50% quorum specifically?
Because below that, a small clique can rubber-stamp disbursements that the rest of the pool would object to. Above 50% (e.g. 66%), legitimate emergency requests stall on weekends and holidays. Half is the empirical sweet spot from our pilot pools — high enough to ensure broad consent, low enough to clear quorum 96% of the time within the 48-hour window.
What if my pool wants different rules?
Then Mutual Aid is the wrong product. Use an outcome fund for one-off goal-driven contributions, or a Business workspace for employer-controlled disbursements. Mutual Aid is specifically the pre-committed, peer-governed, ongoing pool — and the rules are the product.
Where is the money actually held?
In a regulated FBO ("for benefit of") account at our payments processor, held in the pool's name. The pool moderators do not have direct access; disbursement is platform-mediated. The funds earn no interest (regulatory constraint) and are FDIC-insured up to $250k per pool. Pool dissolution returns funds pro rata to members based on cumulative contribution.
Can a moderator overrule a vote?
No. Moderators set the pool charter, approve membership, and curate categories. They cannot pass a disbursement that failed quorum, and they cannot block a disbursement that passed quorum. Moderator power stops at the vote.
What happens to the dispute fees?
There aren't any. Disputes are free to file. Bad-faith disputes (after Gish review) reduce the disputer's Gish ID trust score, which affects their participation rights across the hemisphere. Real consequences, no fees.
Is this regulated as insurance?
No — it's a pre-funded, peer-governed disbursement pool, not an insurance product. The pool members are the capital; the pool charter is the contract. We hold funds and run the governance protocol; we don't underwrite, price risk, or accept claims.
Start a pool with the people who'd show up.
Five members minimum. Pre-committed monthly contributions. Governance by the group, on the platform's rails.