Stoa Pots Terms and Conditions

Stoa Pots Terms and Conditions

  1. ABOUT US
    1. These Terms and Conditions (“Agreement”) apply between The Stoa Corporation Limited, a limited company registered in England and Wales with company number 14012846 and registered offices at 20-22 Wenlock Road, London, England, N1 7GU (“Stoa”, “we”, “us”) and you.
  2. THIS AGREEMENT
    1. Stoa licenses you to use its Stoa Pots software applications (the “Service”) hosted and made available by Stoa (working with other parties mentioned in this Agreement) and any other related content and materials however you access them, whether via the www.stoa.money website (the “Site”) or via a Stoa mobile or tablet app (the “App”).
    2. Definitions. In this Agreement, important definitions will be in bold text. In particular, we wish to draw your attention to the following key definitions:
      1. Stoa Perk: The Stoa Perk is the benefit you will receive, expressed as the price for a good or service provided by one of the merchants, retailers, or brands that we offer you, if you make the required deposit value required for a specific Stoa Pot. This may include gift cards for subscription services such as Netflix or Spotify, or gift cards for single/one off purchases - for full details of the available Stoa Perks please visit your Stoa Account. The Stoa Perk will have a certain value attached to it (“Stoa Perk value”) which will be displayed in Site or App which you will be able to put towards a certain merchant’s or retailer’s product or service, rather than the Stoa Perk being the actual product or service itself. Where Stoa has a partnership with a particular merchant or retailer, this will be clearly shown in the Site or App.
      2. Stoa Pot: The Stoa Pot forms the basis of the contract between us and you and has a particular Stoa Perk associated with it. Once you have chosen your Stoa Perk, to access that Stoa Perk you will be required to make a deposit equal to the deposit value displayed for that particular Stoa Pot. Following receipt of your deposit, we will open the Stoa Pot for you that corresponds to your selected Stoa Perk. You may access multiple Stoa Perks by making multiple deposits as required for each Stoa Pot. The number of Stoa Perks that you have will be equal to the number of Stoa Pots we create for you following your deposits.
      3. Stoa Embedded Account: Your Stoa Embedded Account is the bank account that we open on your behalf at Griffin Bank Limited (“Griffin”) and this is where your deposits are held. We only open one Stoa Embedded Account no matter how many Stoa Pots we create for you, and accordingly all of your deposits are held in this one account.
      4. Stoa Account: when you sign up with Stoa via the Site or the App and use our Services, this is referred to as you having a “Stoa Account”. This is where you will find all of your personal details, view and manage your Stoa Pots and select new Stoa Perks.  
    3. This Agreement applies to your use of the Service. Please read it carefully before you start to use the Service. By using the Service, or otherwise indicating your agreement, you accept the Agreement and agree to comply with its terms (including terms agreed with Griffin and Yapily Connect Ltd (“Yapily”)).
    4. If you do not agree to this Agreement, please do not use the Service. You should download and save or print a copy of this Agreement when possible.
  3. STOA POTS
    1. Once you have created your Stoa Account and you have accepted this Agreement, the Service allows you to deposit money into your Stoa Embedded Bank Account for a fixed period of time (usually 12 months) in return for receiving access to Stoa Perks following us opening a particular Stoa Pot for you.  
    2. The Stoa Embedded Bank Account will be opened and held in your name. Whilst you will only have one Stoa Embedded Bank Account, it is possible to have multiple Stoa Pots (and therefore receive multiple Stoa Perks) if you make multiple deposits.  The Stoa Embedded Bank Account is opened and provided by Griffin (please see Clause 4 (Griffin) for more detail), and it will only be possible to access your Stoa Embedded Bank Account via your Stoa Account.
    3. Specific detail on the Stoa Pots that are available, the scope of your Stoa Perk, and the deposit requirements will be set out in the Service as part of the Stoa Pot features.
    4. Please note:
      1. Your Stoa Pots provide you with your Stoa Perks and benefits, and your deposits held in your Stoa Embedded Bank Account related to your Stoa Pots will not earn any interest. You agree that your deposits will be held for a fixed period of 12 months (or such other period of time specifically stated in the Services in respect of the intended Stoa Perk) from the date of deposit and in return you will receive your selected Stoa Perk for that Stoa Pot for that period (“Deposit Period”).      
      2. You accept that there are certain restrictions on how, when and why you can withdraw a deposit from the Stoa Embedded Bank Account related to your Stoa Pot/s, a withdrawal during the Deposit Period may result in you receiving less than your deposit (your deposit minus the value of your Stoa Perk). Please therefore consider your financial circumstances and ensure you are happy to deposit the amounts for the Deposit Period.
      3. For more information on:
      4. withdrawing your deposit, please see clause 9 (Requesting Withdrawal of Deposit);
      5. options on renewal, please see clause 10 (Options on Renewal); and
      6. how to close your Stoa Account (and the Stoa Embedded Bank Account) and end this Agreement, please see clause 13 (How to Close your Account and End this Agreement),

or you can contact our support email address (support@stoa.money) if you have any further questions.

  1. Stoa is not authorised and regulated by the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) to carry on regulated activities or provide payment services in relation to the Services, so it works with Griffin (in respect of opening an individual Stoa Embedded Bank Account for you, in your name, provided by Griffin, subject to eligibility requirements) and Yapily (in respect of certain Open Banking services related to your Stoa Pot/s and Stoa Embedded Bank Account). Please see clause 4 for more information on Griffin and clause 5 for more information on Yapily.
  2. The remainder of this Agreement sets out important information regarding our Services and use of your Stoa Pot/s. You can also view the key information of your Stoa Pot/s in your Stoa Account.
  1. GRIFFIN (STOA POT BANK ACCOUNT PROVIDER)
    1. Griffin is a company registered in England and Wales with company number: 10842931 and whose registered office is at 9th Floor 107, Cheapside, London, EC2V 6DN.
    2. Griffin accepts deposits and offers other banking, financial and technology services. Griffin is authorised by Prudential Regulation Authority (“PRA”) and regulated by the FCA and PRA.
    3. Griffin’s Financial Service Register number is 970920, it can be accessed here or for further information you can call the Financial Conduct Authority on 0300 500 8082. You can also find out more about Griffin at its website, here.
    4. Stoa works with Griffin as bank account provider for the Service, Griffin provides the Stoa Embedded Bank Account opened in your individual name. You agree that the opening of the Stoa Embedded Bank Account related to your Stoa Pot/s is outside of Stoa’s control and will be subject to Griffin’s own eligibility criteria and risk appetite (meaning we may not be able to offer you the Services if you do not meet these).
  2. YAPILY (OPEN BANKING SERVICE PROVIDER)
    1. Yapily Connect Limited (“Yapily”) is a company incorporated in England and Wales with company number: 11598433 and whose registered office is at 20-22 Wenlock Road, London, N1 7GU.
    2. Yapily provides certain API technology and Open Banking services. Yapily is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority to provide account information services and payment initiation services, which are relevant to the Open Banking elements of our Service.
    3. Yapily’s Financial Services Register number is 827001, it can be accessed here or for further information you can call the Financial Conduct Authority on 0300 500 8082. You can also find out more about Yapily at its website, here.
    4. Stoa can only provide the Service to you if you choose to provide consent to Yapily’s Open Banking access. Stoa is not responsible for Yapily’s Open Banking platform and Yapily’s terms of service will apply between you and Yapily.
    5. You may need to provide consent to Yapily’s Open Banking access within your banking app from time to time when you access the Service to make a new deposit to or withdrawal from your Stoa Pot. The Service is provided free of charge for your personal and non-commercial use only.  
  3. ELIGIBILITY, ACCESS TO AND AVAILABILITY OF THE SERVICE
    1. You will be asked to provide Stoa (or the service providers we work with) with certain details such as your full name, date of birth and email address when you register for a Stoa Account, we also use this for important financial crime checks and verification requirements required by law. For further information about the details we will need from you please see our privacy policy. You agree to only provide your own information when registering for a Stoa Account.
    2. Your Stoa Account and Stoa Pot is personal to you. You must not allow anyone to access your Stoa Account on your behalf.
    3. You must treat as confidential all information related to your Stoa Account, including but not limited to your password, Stoa Pot details and any other pieces of information generated or selected as part of Stoa’s security and authentication procedures, and you must not disclose this information to any third party. Stoa and our partners are not responsible for any loss that you may incur as a result of not having kept this information secure.
    4. Whilst Stoa will try to ensure that the Service is available for your use, it does not promise that the Service will be available at all times nor does Stoa promise the uninterrupted use by you of the Service.
    5. You are responsible for:
      1. making all arrangements necessary for you to have access to the Service (for example ensuring you have an available internet connection);
      2. all costs and expenses you may incur in relation to your use of the Service;
      3. complying with all applicable laws and regulation relevant to your use of the Service;
      4. keeping your details up to date and letting us know immediately if any information you’ve given us changes; and
      5. providing us further information we may need from time to time, for example: to meet our legal and regulatory requirements in relation to anti-money laundering and financial crime.
  4. STOA PERKS
    1. Once you have successfully opened your Stoa Pot and followed steps in the Service to make the required deposit to the Stoa Embedded Bank Account (please see clause 8 and clause 9 below for further detail on Stoa Pot deposit and withdrawal processes), following us receiving confirmation of your deposit (and subject to you meeting requirements of this Agreement and the Stoa Perk selected) we will endeavour to send you your selected Stoa Perk (or information necessary for you to access your selected Stoa Perk) within [NUMBER] days to your email address and your Stoa Account on the Site or App.
    2. You are able to view the status of your Stoa Perk fulfilment in your Stoa Account and can contact us if you have any questions on status of your Stoa Perk and how to use it. If you have not received Stoa Perk information, please check your junk and spam folders to make sure that our email has not been filtered into those folders, and check your Stoa Account on the Site or App.
    3. Stoa reserves the right to send and/or pay for the Stoa Perk in instalments or in multiple gift cards (for example: where a max load value of a gift card is less than the value of your chosen Stoa Perk or instead of providing one 12 month gift card we may send you 4 gift cards at 3 month intervals     , with enough value to service 3 months of the relevant subscription. You would still receive the same total Stoa Perk benefit if you complete the Deposit Period. Specific Stoa Perk criteria will be made available to you in your Stoa Account and the Stoa App when selecting your chosen Stoa Perk.
    4. In circumstances where either:
      1. the merchant or retailer has increased the cost of their product or service that your Stoa Perk was intended to cover after you have made a deposit and entered into the specific Stoa Pot and Deposit Period; or
      2. the pricing shown in the App or Site for a particular merchant or retailer’s product or service is incorrect before you have made a deposit and entered into the specific Stoa Pot and Deposit Period (for example because the pricing shown on the Site or App is out of date), so that the Stoa Perk value you receive is not sufficient to cover its cost, you can write to us to request an additional Stoa Perk to cover the difference between the new cost of the product or service and the Stoa Perk value you received. You acknowledge that whether Stoa decides to send you this additional Stoa Perk value to cover the difference is at Stoa’s sole discretion. Please be aware that you are still obliged to account for the difference to the relevant merchant or retailer, as this is an arrangement with you, not Stoa. Therefore, prior to entering into a contract with the relevant merchant or retailer, you should check the price of the product or service with the relevant merchant or retailer directly.
    5. In relation to clause 7.4.2, whilst Stoa will try to ensure that the Stoa Perk value displayed in the Stoa App or Site is up to date to cover the cost of the merchant or retailer’s product or service that your Stoa Perk was intended to cover, Stoa cannot guarantee that the pricing shown is the most up to date pricing.
  5. OPENING A STOA POT AND MAKING A DEPOSIT TO YOUR STOA EMBEDDED BANK ACCOUNT
    1. When you access our Service you will be able to select one or more Stoa Pot with corresponding Stoa Perks. The list of available Stoa Perks will change regularly and we reserve the right to change the list of available Stoa Perks without notice to you (this means you may not be able to renew the same Stoa Perk after the initial Deposit Period).
    2. Before selecting a Stoa Perk and opening your first Stoa Pot, you will be required to fill out a submission form providing required details for Griffin’s onboarding, identity verification and due diligence checks to determine if you meet relevant eligibility requirements to open your Stoa Embedded Bank Account with Griffin to allow us to provide your initial Stoa Pot and any future Stoa Pots. You will then be sent a link by Griffin’s designated onboarding partner. As at the date of this Agreement, this will be Veriff. Stoa is not responsible for Veriff’s services and Veriff’s terms of service will apply between you and Veriff (or any alternative onboarding partner that Griffin may use from time to time).
    3. Your ability to access the Services is subject to these checks, if you successfully pass these (we may need to request further information from time to time), you will be asked to confirm that you have read and accept this Agreement and certain other terms and conditions linked to provision of the Service. Please do take the time to read these in full and confirm you can abide by the terms prior to clicking accept and continue. Only once you have clicked accept and continue Stoa will take the necessary actions to create your Stoa Pot/s.
    4. You will then be required to connect your designated bank account via the Stoa App and our Open Banking service provider that you wish to use for deposits to and withdrawals from your Stoa Embedded Bank Account provided by Griffin, which holds the deposit/s related to your Stoa Pot/s. As at the date of publication of this Agreement, our Open Banking service provider is Yapily.
    5. Please note that you will only be able to deposit money from your designated bank account if it is held by one of our supported providers, a full list will be displayed in the Stoa App, and each of your Stoa Pots will only be linked to a single Stoa Embedded Bank Account in your name (so please note clause 23 (FSCS Protection) on eligibility and deposit protection limits).
    6. You will be required to specify which bank holds your designated bank account that you wish to make the deposit from (or withdrawal to) and then you will be required to authorise access to this account through your bank’s website or app via the Open Banking service provider integration. Stoa is not responsible for your bank’s services and you will be subject to separate terms and conditions (and privacy policy) with your bank and the Open Banking service provider.
    7. Once your designated bank account has been connected via the Open Banking service provider integration, you will be able to authorise and execute deposit and/or withdrawal into your Stoa Embedded Bank Account which will hold deposits related to your Stoa Pot/s, linked to the Stoa Perks you have chosen and subject to the terms of this Agreement. Timeframes for this deposit and further information will also be available in your Stoa App.
    8. Essentially, the Open Banking service provider brings two key features to the Stoa App and our Services:
      1. Account Initiation Services. This is the process of you agreeing for the Open Banking service provider to connect your bank account as part of the Service journey to see your account information, to help with troubleshooting and Stoa Pot / Stoa Perk promotions that might be most beneficial to you.
      2. Payment Initiation Services. This is the process of you agreeing for the Open Banking service provider to initiate the relevant deposit (or withdrawal) between your bank account and your Stoa Embedded Bank Account provided by Griffin in relation to the Stoa Perk/s you have selected for your Stoa Pot/s. With your consent and instruction, this involves an instruction being provided to your designated bank account provider to make the relevant deposit. This process will involve you being redirected to your designated bank account provider to provide certain login and/or security credentials and satisfy certain authentication requirements – we will never ask for this information directly. Information about status of any deposit or withdrawal will be displayed in your Stoa Account too.
    9. You will need to repeat elements of the process above if you would like to select additional Stoa Perks for any additional Stoa Pot/s, which will require further deposits to be made to your Stoa Embedded Bank Account provided by Griffin.
  6. REQUESTING WITHDRAWAL OF DEPOSIT FROM YOUR STOA EMBEDDED BANK ACCOUNT RELATED TO YOUR STOA POT
    1. In the Deposit Period, you may contact us via the Service and/or our support email address (support@stoa.money) to request the return of your deposit for the relevant Stoa Pot. The return of your deposit for the relevant Stoa Pot is at our sole discretion during the Deposit Period. This does not affect your rights to cancel this Agreement during the Cooling Off Period (please see clause 12 for more information).
    2. Where we agree to return your deposit for the relevant Stoa Pot during the Deposit Period, we reserve the right to deduct up to the full Stoa Perk value you have received from the amount of your deposit. For example, if you deposit £3,000 and receive a gift card with a value of £200, and you request that we return your deposit after only 3 months, we may deduct up to £200 from the amount of your deposit when we return it to you, so you would receive £2,800.
    3. In requesting a withdrawal from your Stoa Embedded Bank Account related to your Stoa Pot for the first time, you will need to follow the process set out in the Stoa App, this may include having to complete a confirmation of payee process to check the account details of your designated bank account which your Stoa Embedded Bank Account withdrawal is intended to be paid to (this must be the same designated bank account as was used for your deposit for the Stoa Perk). After the confirmation of payee process is completed, you will need to confirm via the Stoa App that you agree to proceed with the withdrawal, instructions will not be able to be processed until such confirmation process is completed.
  7. OPTIONS ON RENEWAL
    1. 30 days before the end of the Deposit Period for each of your Stoa Pots Stoa Perks, your Stoa Pot will enter into an offer acceptance period (“OAP”). During the OAP, you will have the option to:
      1. 10.1.1. keep your deposit in the Stoa Embedded Bank Account for the Stoa Pot the same in order to receive the same Stoa Perk, subject to that Stoa Perk being available and your deposit being adjusted if the cost of that Stoa Perk has changed (please see clause 10.4 for more information); or
      2. 10.1.2.keep your deposit in the Stoa Embedded Bank Account but allocate the amount to another Stoa Pot in order to receive a different Stoa Perk, again subject to you making an additional deposit if the cost of that different Stoa Perk is higher than your deposit.
  1. If you do not exercise your options at 10.1.1 or 10.1.2, your deposit will be returned to you from your Stoa Embedded Bank Account to the same designated bank account that the deposit came from at the end of the Deposit Period.  
  2. The OAP lasts until 3 days before the end of the Deposit Period, as we require at least 3 days to arrange to return your deposit amount for the relevant Stoa Pot.
  3. Where the cost of the Stoa Perk has changed this will require an adjustment to your deposit (i.e., a different amount to be deposited). More specifically:
    1. If the Stoa Perk associated with the Stoa Pot requires a higher deposit the action of accepting requires sending an additional deposit amount from your designated bank account to your Stoa Embedded Bank Account (this will require the same steps to be repeated as were required to make the original deposit). The added amount is held until the original Deposit Period expires, at which point the old deposit amount and the new deposit amount combine for the new Stoa Perk and Deposit Period for the relevant Stoa Pot.
    2. If the Stoa Perk associated with your Stoa Pot requires the same deposit, the old deposit amount is retained in the Stoa Embedded Bank Account and used for the new deposit amount for the new Stoa Perk and Deposit Period of the relevant Stoa Pot.
    3. If the Stoa Perk associated with your Stoa Pot requires a lower deposit, the difference will be returned to you from your Stoa Embedded Bank Account to your designated bank account following expiry of the Deposit Period of the relevant Stoa Pot.
  1. DEPOSITS AND WITHDRAWALS: INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS AND WHAT TO DO IF SOMETHING GOES WRONG
    1. 11.1.Deposits to and from the Stoa Pot
      1. Initiating a Deposit or Withdrawal. You can only access your Stoa Embedded Bank Account provided by Griffin via the Stoa Account and App as part of the Services. You must follow the processes set out in your Stoa Account and this Agreement in relation to this. Requests for deposits or withdrawals may require certain information from you and about parties involved, this is required to process these. Generally, deposits and withdrawals between your designated bank account and your Stoa Embedded Bank Account will be via the UK’s Faster Payment System (“FPS”), unless otherwise stated or it utilises the Open Banking services mentioned in this Agreement. Deposits to and withdrawals from your Stoa Embedded Bank Account can’t be changed or cancelled.
      2. Receiving Deposits. Deposits into your Stoa Embedded Bank Account related to your Stoa Pot/s (following process in Clause 8 (Opening a Stoa Pot and Making a Deposit) and subject to relevant checks) will usually be received almost immediately, if this may take longer or is to be rejected, you would be notified via your Stoa Account.
      3. Currency. Unless stated otherwise as part of our Services, deposits to your Stoa Embedded Bank Account related to your Stoa Pot/s may only be made in £ (GBP).
      4. Insufficient Funds. You must make sure there’s sufficient funds to cover deposits, if you attempt to make one with insufficient funds, this may be refused without incurring any liability to you.
      5. Charges. You will not need to pay a fee or charge to deposit or withdraw monies held in the Stoa Embedded Bank Account related to your Stoa Pot/s.
      6. Timings. If your deposit is due to be returned from your Stoa Embedded Bank Account (for example after the Deposit Period of a Stoa Pot), you should receive this the same date as the relevant Deposit Period ends (almost immediately due to FPS, which is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week), it can sometimes take longer, for example: depending on your designated bank account, if withdrawals use a different method, certain verification checks are needed, there’s an operational issue or we require additional details from you.
      7. Limits. We may set and vary limits or place restrictions on level of deposits that may be held in your Stoa Embedded Bank Account for your Stoa Pots. For example: a minimum or maximum amount. You can find out further detail of these limits and restrictions in your Stoa Account.
    2. 11.2.When Deposits or Withdrawals Can’t Be Made
      1. There may be situations where we (or our service providers) suspend, refuse or cannot follow instructions for a deposit or withdrawal, including where:
        1. there are reasonable grounds to believe there is suspicious activity occurring in relation to your use of Stoa Account, Stoa Pot/s, Stoa Embedded Bank Account and the Services;
        2. to do so would amount to a breach of this Agreement or other applicable terms with our relevant service providers;
        3. there are insufficient funds in your Stoa Embedded Bank Account or your designated bank account to make the deposit or withdrawal;
        4. where there is a Service outage (with Stoa or our service providers);
        5. where further information is required to make the relevant deposit or withdrawal (for example: information provided is incorrect or not sufficient for us to proceed); or
        6. there are reasonable grounds that to accept the instruction would result in us or our service providers breaching applicable law and regulation, including those related to financial crime, sanctions or embargos.
      2. We would usually notify you when a deposit or withdrawal cannot be made to/from your Stoa Embedded Bank Account and share detail on how to resolve the issue via your Stoa Account, unless we are not able to make this due to legal and regulatory requirements.
      3. We will not be liable for any losses, damages, costs or expenses arising as a result of a decision to suspend, refuse or follow instructions for a deposit or withdrawal.
  1. 11.3.Unauthorised Transfers    
    1. 11.3.1.If you think something is wrong with a deposit to or from your Stoa Embedded Bank Account related to your Stoa Pot or that someone has accessed your Stoa Account or Stoa Embedded Bank Account, you should notify us as soon as possible (and always within 13 months of the date of the deposit) via your Stoa Account (or details included at Clause 21 (Customer Support and Communication). If you do not tell us within this timeframe Stoa (and any of our relevant service providers) may not be able to resolve the issue for you.
    2. 11.3.2.If you tell us a deposit or withdrawal was not made by you, the matter will be investigated and you would normally receive a refund of the unauthorised amount as soon as reasonably practicable and no later than the next business day after we (and any of our relevant service providers) are notified, subject to you:
      1. 11.3.2.1.being eligible to make the refund claim;
      2. 11.3.2.2.providing notification within the period in clause 11.3.1 (above); and
      3. 11.3.2.3.not being subject to the scenarios in clause 11.3.3 (below).
    3. 11.3.3.You will not receive a refund under this clause 11.3 if:
      1. 11.3.3.1.you fail to meet the notification requirements and time periods set out;
      2. 11.3.3.2.the investigation shows that the transaction was authorised by you (or a person you had granted authority to);
      3. 11.3.3.3.there are reasonable grounds to show you (or a person you had granted authority to) acted fraudulently, or deliberately, or with gross negligence, failed to meet the terms of this Agreement (including in relation to your requirements to keep security details safe).
  2. 11.4.Authorised Transfers
    1. 11.4.1.You may be entitled to a refund of the full amount of a deposit or withdrawal you authorised if:
      1. you are eligible to claim for such refund;
      2. the transaction did not specify the exact amount;
      3. the total amount exceeded the amount you could have reasonably expected to pay (taking into account your previous spending patterns and circumstances of that case); and
      4. you have asked for the refund within 8 weeks of the date of the transaction.
    2. 11.4.2.You agree to provide us (and, as relevant, our service partners) with any further information in relation to transactions as we may require. You may receive either a refund of the full amount or a justification for refusal within 10 business days from the day we or our service partners receive your refund request.
    3. 11.4.3.You won’t receive a refund where:
      1. you have given consent for the transaction to be carried out;
      2. we or the payee, gave you specific information about the deposit at least four weeks before it was due; or
      3. you don’t request the refund within 8 weeks of the date of the relevant deposit or withdrawal.
  3. 11.5.Authorised Push Payment (“APP”) Scams and Fraud
    1. 11.5.1.APP fraud may occur when someone tricks you into sending money from your Stoa Embedded Bank Account related to your Stoa Pots to an account you do not control. Likelihood of this occurring with withdrawals from your Stoa Embedded Bank Account should be limited due to the strict controls in place about the designated bank account that withdrawals are made to, however you may be eligible to make a claim if you have been a victim of APP fraud, for example: if this designated bank account is changed fraudulently or is taken over by a person acting fraudulently.
    2. 11.5.2.If you think you are subject to an APP scam in relation to your Stoa Embedded Bank Account which holds your deposits related to your Stoa Pots, you should notify us as soon as possible via your Stoa Account (or details included at Clause 21 (Customer Support and Communication). We will then investigate the matter with our relevant service providers, contacting the party receiving the money. You must provide all information needed for the investigation (failing to do this could impact your ability to claim).
    3. 11.5.3.We (or the relevant service provider we work with) would confirm the outcome of the investigation in 5 business days (or up to 35 business days if the matter is complex), if your claim is eligible, you will be reimbursed subject to limits of the UK’s APP fraud reimbursement rules and the first £100 of your claim. If your claim is not eligible, the reason for this would be explained to you.
  4. 11.6.Mistaken Transfers
    1. 11.6.1.Your Mistake. If you make a mistake with a deposit or withdrawal, please contact us as soon as possible via your Stoa Account (or details included at Clause 21 (Customer Support and Communication). We are not responsible for a deposit or withdrawal made to the person you have told us (or our service providers) about if you have made a mistake. If you contact us, we will try and help you get your money back although we do not make any guarantee that the money will be returned.
    2. 11.6.2.Stoa Mistake. If a deposit is made relation to your Stoa Embedded Bank Account related to your Stoa Pot/s by mistake by us or our service providers, for example: due to technical error, the amount will automatically be deducted and we will notify you of this. If we are told a deposit is made to your Stoa Embedded Bank Account as a result of someone else’s mistake and, when contacted, you tell us it was intended for you, we may be legally required to share information about you with the relevant parties involved, so that they can contact you.
  1. RIGHT TO CANCEL
    1. Where you are a consumer (i.e., you are acting for purposes that are wholly or mainly outside your trade, business, craft, or profession), you have the right to cancel this Agreement without giving any reason within 14 calendar days of you accepting this Agreement following the opening of your Stoa Pot (and related Griffin bank account) (“Cooling Off Period”). For the avoidance of doubt, the Cooling Off Period does not apply if you are acting in the course of your business.
    2. To exercise this cancellation right, please our contact our support email address before the expiry of the Cooling Off Period (support@stoa.money).
    3. PLEASE NOTE: Where you exercise your right to cancel during the Cooling Off Period, we have the right to deduct from your returned deposit amount the full Stoa Perk value that you have received.
  2. HOW TO CLOSE YOUR ACCOUNT AND END THIS AGREEMENT
    1. 13.1.If you wish to close your Stoa Pot/s, your Stoa Embedded Bank Account and end this Agreement, you may contact us via the Service and/or our support email address (support@stoa.money). If you make this request during a Deposit Period, please refer to clause 9 for how we handle withdrawal requests when we may or may not return your deposit. Where we agree to return your relevant deposit before the end of the relevant Deposit Period, we deduce the full value of any Stoa Perk you have received (see clause 9.2).
    2. 13.2.If you make this request during the Cooling Off Period we will return your deposit in accordance with clause 12 (subject to us deducting the full value of any Stoa Perk you have received).
    3. 13.3.What happens at the end of a Deposit Period is explained in clause 10. If you do not take action during the Offer Acceptance Period, your relevant deposit will automatically be returned to your designated bank account at the end of the relevant Deposit Period, and you can then end this Agreement once all Deposit Periods are ended by contacting us via the Service and/or our support email address (support@stoa.money).
  3. WHEN WILL STOA END OR SUSPEND THIS AGREEMENT
    1. Usually we would provide you 2 months’ notice before we close your Stoa Pot, Stoa Embedded Bank Account and your access to the Services or otherwise end this Agreement. We would let you know this is happening via notice in your Stoa Account and emailing you.
    2. We may suspend or close your Stoa Pot, Stoa Embedded Bank Account and access to the Services or end this Agreement immediately if we reasonably believe or determine any of the following has occurred or will occur:
      1. 14.2.1.our agreement with Griffin enabling us to provide you with your Stoa Embedded Bank Account related to your Stoa Pot/s expires or terminates for any reason;
      2. 14.2.2.you commit a serious breach of any term of this Agreement or you persistently commit a minor breach of this Agreement;
      3. 14.2.3.we suspect unauthorised, fraudulent or suspicious activity on, or involving your Stoa Pot, Stoa Account, Stoa Embedded Bank Account and the Services;
      4. 14.2.4.you give us false or misleading information, or fail to provide the information we request;
      5. 14.2.5.we suspect that you are, or may be, engaged in fraud, money laundering or terrorist financing activities (economic crime);
      6. 14.2.6.you are no longer eligible for a Stoa Pot and/or Stoa Embedded Bank Account;
      7. 14.2.7.there is a dispute over your entitlement to any funds in your Stoa Embedded Bank Account related to your Stoa Pot/s;
      8. 14.2.8.you are subject to any sort of bankruptcy process;
      9. 14.2.9.you have broken or are breaking the law or we reasonably suspend you may be doing so, you are being investigated by any court, government, regulatory authority or you fail ot meet any checks required by law; or
      10. 14.2.10.your Stoa Embedded Bank Account is inactive for 25 calendar months from the date of the last deposit.
    3. 14.3.We will let you know why we need to close your Stoa Pot and/or end this Agreement, subject to any applicable legal or regulatory reasons prohibiting us from doing this.
    4. 14.4.If we close your Stoa Pot or end this Agreement or your Stoa Embedded Bank Account needs to be closed or suspended, the amount that will be returned to you will depend on the reason for closure or ending the arrangement, as follows:
      1. 14.4.1.If this occurs following Stoa’s notice under Clause 14.1 (generally) or Clause 14.2 (matters related to our relationship with our service providers) you will receive the amount in your Stoa Embedded Bank Account related to your Stoa Pot/s less the value of your Stoa Perk/s proportionate to the live Deposit Period/s (for example: if you receive your entire Stoa Perk value at the start of your Deposit Period and your Stoa Pot and Stoa Embedded Bank Account is closed or the Agreement ends, you would receive your deposit      less the Stoa Perk value (unless we exercise our discretion not to make a deduction or to deduct a lessor amount);
      2. 14.4.2.If this occurs following Stoa’s notice under Clause 14.2 (matters related to your behaviour or use of the Services) you will receive the amount in your Stoa Embedded Bank Account related to your Stoa Pot/s less the full value of your Stoa Perk/s for the live Deposit Period/s).
  4. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS
    1. Stoa is the owner or the licensee of all intellectual property rights in the Service, the Site, and the App.
    2. Nothing in this Agreement grants you any legal rights in the Service, the Site or the App other than as necessary to enable you to access the Service in accordance with this Agreement. You agree not to adjust or try to circumvent or delete any notices contained on the Service, Site or App (including but not limited to any intellectual property notices) and in particular in any digital rights or other security technology embedded or contained within the Service, Site or App.
    3. You agree to grant Stoa a non-exclusive, royalty free,  worldwide and sub-licensable licence to use the information, materials, data and other content that you provide or grant Stoa access to via the Service (“Your Content”). Stoa and its chosen third party service providers and partners may use, modify, display, distribute and create derivative materials using Your Content for the purpose of providing the Service to you and generating aggregated insights about Stoa’s userbase and its users’ spending and savings habits.
  5. ACCEPTABLE USE RESTRICTIONS
    1. 16.1.You must not:
      1. attempt to circumvent password or user authentication methods on the Service;
      2. reproduce, duplicate, copy or re-sell any part of the Service other than as permitted by this Agreement;
      3. access without authority, interfere with, damage or disrupt any part of the Service, any equipment or network on which the Service is stored or any software used in the provision of the Service;
      4. use the Service to access without authority, interfere with, damage or disrupt any service, system, equipment, network or software owned or used by any third party;
      5. reverse engineer or reverse compile any of the technology used to provide you with the Service, including but not limited to, any applications associated with the Service, the Site and the App; or
      6. 16.1.6.use the Service:
        1. for any purpose that is unlawful under any applicable law or prohibited by this Agreement or otherwise promote any unlawful activity;
        2. in any way that may infringe Stoa’s intellectual property rights or those of any third party;
        3. to commit any act of fraud;
        4. to distribute viruses or malware or other similar harmful software code;
        5. for purposes of promoting unsolicited advertising or sending spam;
        6. to simulate communications from Stoa or another service or entity in order to collect identity information, authentication credentials, or other information (known as ‘phishing’); or
        7. to represent or suggest that Stoa endorses any other business, product or service unless Stoa has separately agreed to do so in writing.
  6. USE OF YOUR PERSONAL DATA
    1. Stoa takes your privacy and its obligations in relation to your privacy seriously. Under data protection legislation, Stoa is required to provide you with certain information including information about how Stoa processes your personal data and for what purposes and your rights in relation to your personal data and how to exercise them. This information is provided in Stoa’s privacy policy.
    2. Stoa is not responsible for how third parties such as Griffin, Yapily, and Veriff process your personal data when they act as a data controller. For information on how third parties process your personal data, please visit that third parties’ privacy policy (as may be updated by that third party from time to time):
      1. 17.2.1.Griffin: https://griffin.com/privacy.
      2. 17.2.2.Yapily: https://www.yapily.com/legal/privacy-policy.
      3. 17.2.3.Veriff: https://www.veriff.com/privacy-notice.
  7. THE SERVICES
    1. Stoa warrants (guarantees) that it has and will maintain all necessary licences, consents, and permissions necessary for the performance of its obligations under this Agreement in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations.
    2. Although Stoa makes reasonable efforts to update the information provided by the App and the Service, Stoa does not make representations, warranties or guarantees, whether express or implied, that such information is accurate, complete or up to date.
    3. Stoa does not take responsibility for any material downloaded or otherwise obtained through the use of the Service.
    4. Stoa cannot guarantee that the Service will meet your particular needs. You will need to make your own independent judgment about whether to use the Service.
    5. No advice or information, whether written or oral, obtained by you from Stoa or Stoa’s partners or from the Service will create any warranty not expressly stated in this Agreement.
  8. STOA’S LIABILITY TO YOU
    1. Stoa does not exclude or limit in any way its liability to you where it would be unlawful to do so. If Stoa fails to comply with this Agreement, Stoa is responsible for loss or damage you suffer that is a foreseeable result of Stoa breaking this Agreement.
    2. Stoa shall have no liability for any failure to provide, or any delay in providing, or suspending your Stoa Account in accordance with this Agreement if such failure, delay or suspension results from:
      1. your failure to comply with your obligations under the Agreement or to provide us with information or updates that are reasonable required or requested by us (or the providers we work with);
      2. you providing incorrect deposit/withdrawal/payment instructions; or
      3. any pending investigations in relation to your use of the Services and activities on your Stoa Account and your Stoa Embedded Bank Account provided by Griffin.
    3. Further, Stoa is not responsible for the following:
      1. unforeseeable losses (this is where it was not obvious that it would happen and nothing you said to Stoa meant that Stoa should have expected it);
      2. delays or interruptions outside of Stoa’s control;
      3. losses not caused by any breach on Stoa’s part, including but not limited to any loss or damage you suffer as a result of problems with a third party system including any error with Griffin’s or Yapily’s systems or the designated bank account that you choose to connect to your Stoa Account;
      4. your use of the Service for the purpose of trade, business, craft or profession; or
      5. losses you could have avoided by taking reasonable action.
  9. CIRCUMSTANCES OUTSIDE STOA’S CONTROL

If Stoa’s provision of the Service is delayed or interrupted by an event outside of Stoa’s control, Stoa will not be liable for delays caused by the event. Stoa will take steps to minimise the effect of any delay or interruption caused by an event outside of Stoa’s control.

  1. CUSTOMER SUPPORT AND COMMUNICATION
    1. If you want to learn more about the Service or have any problems when using it, please contact us via the App or: support@stoa.money. We are available to respond Monday to Friday between 9am and 5pm and we will respond to you as soon as we can.
    2. If Stoa needs to contact you or send a notification under this Agreement or as part of our Services, we will do so either via your Stoa Account and App or via email, using the email address you provided to Stoa when creating your Stoa Account. You can update your contact details and personal information via the Stoa App too.
    3. Stoa provides all customer service for the Services and your Stoa Pot. We aim to resolve all enquiries as quickly as we can. For certain enquiries, we may need to liaise with our service providers, like Griffin or Yapily). We would keep you updated on progress of your enquiry.
    4. If you are not satisfied with Stoa’s customer service or any element of the Services and your Stoa Pot, please follow the process at Clause 22. (How To Make A Complaint) below.
  2. HOW TO MAKE A COMPLAINT
    1. Stoa and the providers we work with to deliver our Services, your Stoa Embedded Bank Account and your Stoa Pot/s are focused on providing an excellent experience for you. If you are unhappy with your experience and the service you have received, please let us know.
    2. In the first instance, please contact the Stoa team at support@stoa.money . We will do our best to resolve the matter quickly and fairly.
    3. If the complaint relates to parts of our Services provided by third parties (like your Stoa Embedded Bank Account provided by Griffin which you access via the Stoa Account and App or Yapily’s Open Banking services), Stoa may have to liaise with these providers in handling the matter (and may require further information from you). We may also have to pass your complaint on to that third party where required to do so, we would keep you informed of this (and you can see how we share your personal information in our privacy policy.
    4. Handling of complaints related to your Stoa Embedded Bank Account linked to your Stoa Pot/s and Open Banking service integration are subject to certain regulatory timeframes, whereby your complaint will be acknowledged and you would receive a formal response within 15 business days (this can be extended by 20 business days for further investigation).
    5. If you’re not happy with the way your complaint is handled, you may be able to refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service:
      1. 22.5.1.By writing: Financial Ombudsman Service, Exchange Tower, London E14 9SR.
      2. 22.5.2.By email: complaint.info@financial-ombudsman.org.uk.
      3. 22.5.3.By telephone: 0800 023 4567 or 0300 123 9123.
      4. 22.5.4.Further information available at: www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk.
  3. FINANCIAL SERVICES COMPENSATION SCHEME (“FSCS”) PROTECTION
    1. Funds held in your Stoa Embedded Bank Account provided by Griffin in relation to your Stoa Pot/s are covered by the FSCS, dependent on you being eligible for this. Information on eligibility and the protection limits are available on Griffin’s Deposit Protection webpage and in Griffin’s FSCS information sheet.      In entering into this Agreement you acknowledge that you have read and accepted the Griffin FSCS information sheet and Griffin’s Deposit Protection webpage.
    2. If you meet the eligibility requirements, the FSCS can pay compensation if Griffin were unable to meet its financial responsibilities. Please note: The amount of your funds protected may be impacted if you have other Griffin bank accounts, as the FSCS limit relates to the combined total of all your funds you hold with Griffin, including those funds held in your Stoa Embedded Bank Account related to your Stoa Pots (this is a single Griffin bank account in your name, holding the total deposit amount).
  4. THIRD PARTY LINKS
    1. The Service may contain links to other independent websites which are not provided by Stoa. Such independent sites are not under Stoa’s control and Stoa is not responsible for and has not checked or approved their content or their privacy policies (if any).
    2. You will need to make your own independent judgement about whether to use any such independent sites, including whether to buy any products or services offered by them.
  5. CHANGES TO THIS AGREEMENT
    1. We may need to revise this Agreement from time to time to comply with law, regulatory requirements or to meet changing business requirements (including changes required by our service providers).
    2. We will provide you with at least 14 days’ notice of any change to this Agreement by sending you an email with details of the change or notifying you of a change within your Stoa Account. If the changes relate to your Stoa Embedded Bank Account provided by Griffin linked to your Stoa Pot/s or other regulated payment services relevant to operation of your Stoa Account and the Services, we usually need to give you two months’ notice before making these changes.
    3. If you do not accept the notified changes you can notify Stoa and Stoa will arrange for your Stoa Account and Stoa Embedded Bank Account to be closed, subject to the rest of this Agreement.
  6. GENERAL TERMS
    1. Tax liabilities. Stoa Pots and the Stoa Perks you receive are designed so that, in most cases, you should not need to pay tax on them. However, tax treatment can vary depending on your personal situation. If you do need to pay any tax, it is your responsibility to do so. If HMRC charges us any tax that should have been paid by you, you agree to cover that cost.
    2. Transferring this Agreement. Stoa can transfer its contract with you, so that a different organisation is responsible for supplying the Service. Stoa will contact you to let you know if it plans to do this. If you're unhappy with the transfer you can close your Stoa Account and terminate this contract in accordance with this Agreement. Your contract with Stoa is personal to you and you cannot transfer it to anyone else.
    3. Nobody else has any rights under this contract. This Agreement is between you and Stoa. Nobody else can enforce it and neither you or Stoa will need to ask anybody else to sign-off on ending or changing it.
    4. If a court invalidates some of this contract, the rest of it will still apply. If a court or other authority decides that some of the terms of this Agreement are unlawful, the rest of the Agreement will continue to apply.
    5. Even if Stoa delays in enforcing this Agreement, it can still enforce it later. Stoa might not immediately chase you for not doing something or for doing something you're not allowed to, but that doesn’t mean Stoa can't do it later.
    6. Governing law and where you can go to court. This Agreement is governed by English law and wherever you live you can bring claims against Stoa in the English courts. If you live in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland, you can also bring claims against Stoa in the courts of the country you live in. Stoa can claim against you in the courts of the country you live in.