Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

GoDaddy acquires Cayman domain registrar Uniregistry

GoDaddy acquires Cayman domain registrar Uniregistry

GoDaddy Inc. has struck a deal to acquire Uniregistry’s domain registrar and marketplace businesses.
Uniregistry was launched in Cayman in 2014 by industry pioneer Frank Schilling to provide domain name investors with specialised tools to register, manage and sell domains.

The company later expanded its services, but domain investors always remained the focus of the business.

“Uniregistry is unique in that domain investors built it from the ground up, so their products and services have always catered to the domain investor community,” said GoDaddy vice president Paul Nicks in a press statement.

“Combining Uniregistry’s solutions and incredible knowledge with our platform will help investors succeed and advance future innovations for them.”

In an email to the Cayman Compass, Uniregistry CEO Schilling, said, “This really is a terrific day for Cayman. A mainstream Fortune 500 technology company is setting up and expanding with the kind of real-world tech presence you would normally find in Silicon Valley.”

The deal also covers a portfolio of more than 350,000 domain names that Schilling has built up over the past two decades. It will bring GoDaddy’s portfolio to about 1 million domains.

“Frank is one of the smartest and savviest investors, and his portfolio shows that knowledge and acumen. We can’t wait to bring these to market for our customers with competitive prices,” Nicks said.

GoDaddy is a New York Stock Exchange-listed domain registrar and web-hosting company with an expected turnover of close to US$3 billion in 2019. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter of 2020.

Uniregistry staff in Cayman have been informed that there will be no changes in the interim and that GoDaddy plans to maintain operations on island. The registrar service will continue to operate at its existing website.

“There are between 40 and 50 people at Uni, who will form a part of the Godaddy family, and I understand that Godaddy will be renewing its lease at Governors Square so you could expect an expansion of their presence,” Schilling said.

In a corporate blog post, Nicks added that Uniregistry’s products and services for domain investors will bolster the combined product offerings. “Their extensive experience and capabilities in the industry will bring a valuable perspective to how we operate as a team,” he wrote.

Uniregistry’s brokerage team, meanwhile, “will be a huge asset for our customers”, Nicks added. “Combined with the GoDaddy team, they will be able to work together to leverage strategies and contacts in order to provide great service to customers who need brokerage.”

Uniregistry informed customers that “teams and key contacts will remain and all systems will continue to function” in the same way. “The Market will continue selling domain names and it’ll be business as usual. As time rolls on we’ll be looking at how the Uniregistry Market paired with GoDaddy’s expertise can serve the greater investor community at large,” an email to customers said.

Schilling said he is proud of his team, which will now have the opportunity to scale the solutions developed at Uniregistry with GoDaddy’s customers.

Schilling said his 50th birthday was the biggest factor for the sale. “I have been plying my trade for nearly 20 years and Godaddy made us a financially excellent offer.”

He denied that the divorce from his wife Michele, who is a co-owner of the business, had played a role. “While it’s a happy coincidence that there is liquidity in one of my ex-wife’s and my shared business units, she and I share other business interests and will be joined in those for years to come. And, of course, we both continue to reside in Cayman and raise two children together here.”

Schilling said he will remain in the industry, operating the company’s back-end registry division, which was not part of the GoDaddy transaction. The Uniregistry domain registry manages top-level domain names like ‘.link’, ‘.game’ or ‘.help’ with offices in Cayman and in Califormia.

“Think of it like the power plant or utility that keeps the lights on. Godaddy has bought all our consumer-facing and retail infrastructure, but for .ky and the other extensions you see at www.Uniregistry.link, we will continue to own and operate those extensions,” he explained.
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Trump Says Ukraine Can Fully Restore Borders with NATO Backing
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Germany Weighs Excluding France from Key European Fighter Jet Programme
Cyberattack Disrupts Check-in and Boarding Systems at Major European Airports
Björn Borg Breaks Silence: Memoir Reveals Addiction, Shame and Cancer Battle
When Extremism Hijacks Idealism: How the Baader-Meinhof Gang Emerged and Fell
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
Trump Orders $100,000 Fee on H-1B Visas and Launches ‘Gold Card’ Immigration Pathway
France’s Looming Budget Crisis and Political Fracture Raise Fears of Becoming Europe’s “Sick Man”
Three Russian MiG-31 Jets Breach Estonian Airspace in ‘Unprecedentedly Brazen’ NATO Incident
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
×