Financial Transparency
Last updated: March 1, 2026
Beekeeper believes that everyone using our platform — merchants, creators, and their customers — deserves to understand exactly how money flows through it. This page explains our revenue model, how we charge merchants, how creators get paid, and what we do and don't do with money.
Who We Are
Beekeeper is operated by Risan Solutions, a Norwegian sole proprietorship (enkeltpersonforetak, Org.nr 937 137 273). We are a technology platform — not a bank, payment processor, financial institution, or marketplace that takes a cut of consumer purchases.
We provide software tools: coupon distribution, campaign management, API-based redemption validation, and creator commission tracking. We charge merchants for this software on a per-use basis.
How Beekeeper Earns Money
We charge merchants a per-redemption platform fee:
1% of pre-discount cart value + $0.10 USD per redemption
This fee is charged to the merchant only — never to end customers. End customers pay only the discounted price set by the merchant in their own store.
Fees are billed via Stripe metered billing. Each successful coupon redemption reported by the merchant's checkout system generates one usage event, which is invoiced on a monthly basis. All fees are in USD and exclusive of VAT.
| Cart Value | Example Discount | Beekeeper Fee |
|---|---|---|
| $50.00 | $5.00 (10%) | $0.60 (1% × $50 + $0.10) |
| $100.00 | $15.00 (15%) | $1.10 (1% × $100 + $0.10) |
| $250.00 | $25.00 (10%) | $2.60 (1% × $250 + $0.10) |
The platform fee is calculated on the pre-discount cart value. This is intentional: the fee reflects the gross merchandise value of the transaction, not the discounted amount.
How Creator Commissions Work
When a creator promotes a merchant's campaign and a customer redeems a coupon through that creator's link, the creator earns a commission. Commission rates are set by the merchant on a per-creator basis and can range from 0% to 100% of the post-discount cart value.
Commission Formula:
Creator Commission = Post-Discount Cart Value × Commission Rate
Total Billed to Merchant = Platform Fee + Creator Commission
| Cart (pre-discount) | Discount | Commission Rate | Creator Earns | Platform Fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $100 | $10 | 10% | $9.00 | $1.10 |
| $50 | $5 | 20% | $9.00 | $0.60 |
| $200 | $20 | 5% | $9.00 | $2.10 |
Creator commissions are not taken from Beekeeper's platform fee. Both the platform fee and the creator commission are billed separately to the merchant via Stripe metered billing. Beekeeper acts as a reporting and tracking layer — it records the commission owed and pays it out to the creator via Stripe Connect once they request a payout (minimum $25.00 USD).
How Money Flows
At redemption time:
Customer → [pays $90] → Merchant's store (Merchant's payment processor)
(Customer saved $10 via the coupon — merchant honored this discount)
Monthly billing (via Stripe):
Merchant → [pays platform fee: $1.10] → Beekeeper
Merchant → [pays creator commission: $9.00 credited to creator balance] → Beekeeper → [transfers via Stripe Connect] → Creator
Beekeeper never holds end-customer funds. No money passes through Beekeeper between the customer and the merchant.
What Beekeeper Does Not Do
- We do not process customer payments. All customer checkout payments go through the merchant's own payment processor (Stripe, PayPal, etc.).
- We do not hold customer funds. Beekeeper is not a money transmitter or escrow service.
- We do not take a cut of the discount. The discount is applied entirely by the merchant in their store.
- We do not share your transaction data for advertising. Redemption data is used solely to calculate fees and commissions.
- We do not charge end customers. Consumers who redeem coupons are never billed by Beekeeper.
Our Payment Infrastructure
All payment processing for platform fees and creator payouts is handled by Stripe (Stripe, Inc. and its European affiliates). Beekeeper uses:
- Stripe Billing (Metered): Monthly invoicing to merchants based on reported usage events (one event per redemption).
- Stripe Connect (Express): Creator identity verification (KYC) and direct payouts to creator bank accounts. Stripe handles all regulatory compliance for creator onboarding.
- Stripe Webhook Signature Verification: All incoming Stripe events are cryptographically verified using HMAC-SHA256 to prevent tampering.
Beekeeper never stores payment card data. Stripe is PCI-DSS compliant and certified under the EU-US Data Privacy Framework. For Stripe's own terms, see stripe.com/legal/ssa.
Refunds and Disputes
Refunds to end customers are entirely the merchant's responsibility and are handled through the merchant's own payment processor. Beekeeper is not involved in customer refunds.
Platform fees (Beekeeper's per-redemption charge to the merchant) are non-refundable once a redemption is confirmed, except in the event of a verified technical error on Beekeeper's part. To dispute a platform fee, contact legal@beekeeper.bz.
Creator commissions are non-refundable once paid out via Stripe Connect, except in cases of confirmed fraud or technical error. Creator balances not yet paid out may be adjusted pending investigation of fraud reports.
Financial Record Keeping
Beekeeper maintains financial records in accordance with Norwegian law (Bokføringsloven). All redemption records, fee records, commission records, and payout records are retained for a minimum of 7 years from the date of the transaction.
Merchants and creators can download a summary of their financial history at any time via Settings → Privacy & Data → Download Your Data.
Questions?
If you have questions about our fee structure, how money flows, or a specific transaction, contact us:
- Email: legal@beekeeper.bz
- General: hello@beekeeper.bz