Terms of Membership

1. Nature of Membership

ETC Platform operates as a Private Members Association (PMA). By purchasing a membership or creating an account, you are applying to join the PMA and agree to be bound by its Constitution, Bylaws, and these terms.

Membership is subject to the trust and vouch system described in the PMA Bylaws. Purchasing a plan does not guarantee full platform access — trust levels are earned through community participation and vouches from existing members.

2. Membership Plans

ETC offers monthly membership starting from £4/month, plus one-time founding memberships available during the founding phase. All plans include access to the complete feature set. See the Pricing and Founding Members pages for current details.

Monthly membership prices may change over time, subject to member governance vote. Changes require reasonable notice (minimum 60 days for existing members).

3. Founding & Lifetime Membership

Founding memberships purchased during the founding phase are one-time payments granting lifetime access. The following terms apply to any lifetime or founding membership:

• One-time payment: A single payment grants permanent access to all current and future platform features.
• Price lock: Your founding price is locked at the amount paid. No recurring charges will ever be applied to a lifetime membership.
• Non-transferable: The membership is tied to one individual account and cannot be transferred to another man or woman.
• Feature access: All features available at the time of purchase, plus all future features added to the platform, are included at no additional cost.
• Trust level: A founding or lifetime membership does not bypass the trust level system. You start at Probationary and progress through community participation like any other member.
• Decentralisation: All decentralisation features (P2P messaging, full P2P architecture) are included.
• Not an investment: Founding memberships are never an investment. They confer no shares, equity, or financial return of any kind.

4. Payment Terms

• Payments are processed via Wise Business.
• Domestic UK bank transfers (BACS/Faster Payments) incur no additional fees.
• International transfers (SWIFT/IBAN) may incur fees from your bank — these are your responsibility.
• Payment must include the provided reference code for automatic order matching.
• Orders are confirmed once payment is received and matched to your order.

5. Refund Policy

• Cooling-off period: 14 days from the date of purchase. During this period, you may request a full refund for any reason.
• After cooling-off: Membership fees are non-refundable in cash. Pro-rata credits may be issued as Unity Pounds or credit toward future purchases, at the discretion of the Finance Committee.
• Lifetime and founding memberships: Subject to the same 14-day cooling-off period. After this period, the membership is non-refundable but remains permanently active.

6. Acceptable Use

Members agree to comply with the ETC PMA Constitution, Bylaws, Feature Policies, and Community Standards. Violations may result in moderation action, trust level reduction, or — in serious cases — membership termination through the governance dispute resolution process (12-member jury).

7. Data and Privacy

Your data is handled in accordance with our Privacy Policy. Key principles: you own your data, you can export it at any time, and messages are end-to-end encrypted. The platform operates on a data minimisation principle.

8. Governance

ETC is governed by its members through democratic processes defined in the PMA Constitution and Bylaws. Disputes are resolved through the jury system (12-member panels for standard cases, 24-member panels for appeals). All governance decisions are binding and documented.

9. Limitation of Liability

ETC Platform is provided "as is" during its early-stage development. While we strive for reliability and security, the platform is under active development and features may change. We are not liable for indirect, consequential, or incidental damages arising from platform use. This does not affect your statutory rights.

10. Changes to These Terms

Changes to these terms require member governance approval for material changes. Minor clarifications may be made without a vote. Members will be notified of all changes with a minimum of 30 days' notice.

11. Governing Law

These terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales. The ETC PMA Constitution and Bylaws take precedence in matters of internal governance and dispute resolution.

12. Contact

For questions about these terms, please use our contact page. Contact details will be published there when the platform launches publicly.