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Community FAQ | PLU Rewards Payouts (Terms of Use & Violations)
5 min read
Please note, Plutus offers lucrative rewards and encourages in-app engagement and stacking in self-custody wallets for level progression. Responsible use is crucial to maintaining a valuable rewards system.
Our terms have remained consistent since our whitepaper was released 10 years ago. PLU is designed for in-app use and self-custody stacking. The recent update clarifies behaviours that undermine sustainability, devalue the system, and negatively impact the broader customer base who are earning and stacking rewards.
Note: The Doubled Stack rule applies only to your original contribution, regardless of your current reward level. For example, if you were at Hero and earned enough to unlock Veteran, you’re in compliance and won’t be penalised for not upgrading to Legend or for downgrading without further progression, as long as you’ve maintained long-term in-app engagement.
All emails will be sent by 18th October, 2024. If you don’t receive one, you're in the clear. As Danial mentioned on X, less than 5% of customers have repeated or multiple violations, intentional or not. Since we can’t verify this with ‘userID’ alone, we’ve taken a lenient approach. Instead of closing accounts, we encourage customers to stack rewards in-app, progress to the next sub-level, and earn CRY daily.
Complete Both Steps to Remove Violation Penalties and Regain Full Access
Benefits: There’s no financial commitment required—PLU is an in-app loyalty rewards token issued for loyalty. In fact, 80% of our customers (incl. violators) have earned two to three times their original stack used to unlock their tier and can easily upgrade to the next sub-level. By completing these requirements, customers earn even more, with higher rewards rates and daily CRY earnings.
Note: To find out how much PLU you need to earn and upgrade to a sub-levels, log into the web version of the Plutus App and head to the Reward Levels tab.
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We are committed to maintaining fairness in our platform. The PLU Rewards program has always followed the principles in our 2015 whitepaper and Terms of Service. From the start, we’ve emphasised that PLU Rewards are designed for in-app loyalty, and misuse constitutes a terms violation, potentially limiting access to rewards—similar to how in-store loyalty programs revoke points for rule breaches. PLU Rewards are in-app loyalty tokens owned by Plutus, not financial instruments.
Our recent terms update clarifies behaviours considered violations, as outlined in Section 15.4, which states:
"Any breach of these Terms, whether past or future, can, at our sole discretion, result in loss of access to features such as reward levels, earned PLU, or lead to account closure, clawbacks of rewards, and other benefits."
Note: We provided a 30-day notice period for customers to review and accept the new terms or exit the platform without penalty, as outlined in Sections 22.1 (general terms) and 25.2 (clarified terms). This process ensured customers were informed of the updates, allowing those who disagreed to leave without penalty. Those who continued using the platform automatically accepted the new terms, in line with UK & EU consumer guidelines. As a regulated service, all terms, conditions, and announcements are reviewed by third-party legal teams and our in-house MLRO to ensure compliance with UK & EU law.
Unproductive behaviour refers to exploiting the rewards system without supporting its sustainability. This includes disruptive conduct or intentionally using the product for third-party payouts instead of stacking rewards or progressing through levels. Such actions diminish the value of rewards for everyone and make the system less appealing for growth. More details on non-productive use.
Penalties for unproductive behaviour may include PLU payout restrictions, or account closure and legal action for system manipulation. For example, activities like destacking during favourable conditions and later restacking for extra benefits will result in severe penalties. Please refer to clause 15.4 of our terms and conditions.
Since the release of the 2015 Plutus White Paper, in-app engagement and stacking PLU in self-custody have been core elements of our platform’s rewards structure. All terms and promotions have consistently emphasised this, whether through using the legacy PlutusDEX or participating in new 2024 utilities.
While we acknowledge there has been a period while utilities, like the DEX, have been unavailable, the principle of stacking and in-app engagement has always remained central to our rules. Transferring PLU to third-party wallets has never aligned with our terms and undermines the intent of the platform.
Although features like the DEX were paused, this doesn’t justify repeated violations through third-party payouts. From inception until 2023, Plutus offered a 0% fee DEX, which was paused to focus on scaling the platform and developing new features. In 2024, customers will be able to redeem their PLU in-app without any violations for tangible value through features like unlimited access to PlutusSwap (EEA) and utilities such as PlutusMiles, PlutusTravel, and PlutusGift. A complete p2p DEX for advanced Web3 users will return in 2025. For more details, refer to the Simplified White Paper.
The updated terms apply to all customers, and aim to prevent non-productive behaviour that impacts the ecosystem. Here’s our plan that will benefit all stackers:
Note: Lower third-party fees on PlutusSwap (Web2); the team can contractually bring this to under 5% in 2024 if non-productive trends cease. That’s the aim.
CRY is earned by engaging with the app long-term, and it comes from recycled rewards through FUEL. The feature has its own rules that help sustainability, where moving stacked or earned PLU to third-party wallets during the 12 month stacking period will result in losing all CRY you’ve earned.
Those who complete each 12-month stacking period can move their accumulated PLU to non-connected wallets without penalties, as they have followed the rules, contributed to sustainability through long-term engagement, and supported the collective community effort.
That said, once all in-app swap features are live and the CRY rewards multiplier is awarded, most customers will likely prefer keeping their PLU within the system, making the Request Payout (withdrawal) feature unnecessary.
If you receive PLU from a third party wallet and stack it in a connected wallet to earn rewards, then later destack, you won’t face payout restrictions if:
Note: You will forfeit all PLU earned through CRY if you destack before completing the 12-month stacking period, as shown on the Reward Level dashboard.
Absolutely not! We encourage self-custody stacking, a concept we pioneered in 2015 and remain committed to as a core USP that we won’t compromise on. You are free to request payouts and hold PLU in your Metamask wallet connected to the Plutus app. You can use this PLU to:
Note: Moving earned PLU from your connected wallet to third-party, non-connected wallet is a term violation that triggers a notification with guides on sustainability. Repeat or combined offences may result in payout restrictions, requiring stacking and earning CRY for 90 days. For more details, please visit: Plutus Help - Breaches of Policy.
To transfer your PLU to third-party wallets without penalties, you must complete a 12-month CRY stacking period. After this, you can move your PLU as you wish without restrictions.
Note: During the stacking period, you’ll accumulate PLU earned from card spending and receive CRY with its Multiplier, which you can also request payouts for once the period is complete.
Read more: Compound Rewards Yield (CRY) Guide
Unlike a typical Web3 service or crypto reward cards, Plutus is non-custodial and doesn’t hold customer digital assets. Additionally, fiat remains in insured accounts segregated at the Bank of England and similar regulated financial institutions. As clarified in question 3, and in clause 5.3 of our terms, PLU Rewards are the property of Plutus until it is sent to customers connected wallets for their loyalty.
Note: PLU Reward Payouts are live for all customers following the terms. PLU Rewards Payout Tracker.
Plutus has made updates to ensure long-term sustainability, improve product features, and align with evolving regulatory requirements. Each change is carefully communicated with at least 30 days' notice via email, and major updates—like the 2023 banking transition, or the DA and the recent whitepaper—which were both announced nearly a year in advance, with 67% of the community voting in favour of the ongoing upgrades.
Note: As a regulated service, all terms, conditions, and announcements are reviewed by third-party legal teams and in-house MLRO to ensure compliance with UK & EU law.
No, there will be no limits on utilities such as gift cards and card top-ups, as confirmed by the CEO during a recent AMA. However, misuse or attempts to game the system across any feature are prohibited. Specific terms related to each feature will be announced prior to release.
For example, PlutusSwap fees were communicated well in advance by the CEO on social media. Similarly, all product terms will be shared ahead of time.
To stay informed about upcoming features, follow our official social media accounts:
Important Note: Plutus is the sole ERC20 startup from the 2015 era to deliver on key promises with a real-world tokenised product loved by thousands, all while remaining self-funded. Our commitment to organic growth is evident in our ongoing efforts as a rare community-driven fintech.
Some Achievements: We pioneered the first loyalty rewards card with a non-custodial fiat-crypto DEX, facilitating $50 million in swaps at 0% fees. Plutus covered up to $5 million in customer swaps and GAS costs, while ensuring full self-custody—an achievement that has largely been forgotten and is often overlooked.
DEX and US Launch: The DEX was paused to prioritise scalability and improve banking features and tokenomics, which also delayed our U.S. launch. We understand this may have caused frustration, but ensuring a scalable app with stable tokenomics is essential before entering a consumer market of 330 million.
Misinformation and misguided criticism about Plutus, such as not delivering on its promises are often driven by self-serving views that undermine the genuine efforts of our loyal customers. Rest assured, our compliance team is actively addressing these issues, allowing us to scale with customers who share our core values.
Without clear enforcement of our terms, our efforts to deliver key whitepaper features would be undermined, leaving us with an unsustainable rewards system. It’s crucial that we enforce the rules while delivering new features so that all customers can work together towards long-term benefits, such as level progression and earning CRY.
Yes, please open a ticket. Some users may have been caught unintentionally by our violation tracker. We rely on data markers and may miss identifying individual cases. Kindly reach out to us, we’ll fix it right away along with a GWG for the inconvenience.
We sincerely appreciate the contributions of all customers, especially those who follow the product guidelines and support the ecosystem. However, the rules apply to everyone, particularly high-tier members who have a greater responsibility to follow the terms. According to data, many have earned 3x times their original stack, with some being the heaviest polluters.
Note: The majority of our reward level customers remain unaffected, as only serious violations are being addressed through requirements for in-app engagement. Our goal is to create a fair and sustainable ecosystem for all, not just a select few.
Yes, our terms apply to all customers who benefit from our lucrative subscription plans or Reward Levels. Customers are required to stack rewards for level progression or engage with in-app features like PlutusGift or PlutusSwap to derive value.
Repeated third-party payouts, despite earning enough PLU to progress through reward levels (or sub-levels) within a year, will result in restrictions on PLU Rewards usage.
Note: This aligns with our 2025 reward levels, featuring a front-loading feature for new customers to easily progress, unlock tiers and earn CRY by stacking just 1 PLU.
Yes, absolutely! Your stack is non-custodial, so you're free to destack and leave the platform. Simply contact our customer support team, and we’ll expedite your request.
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