Ryan Colby shared an update on Twitter and LinkedIn last week that caught my attention. Ryan announced that he will be running an “exclusive crypto domain auction” with a reported $20 million worth of domain names up for bid:
I’m thrilled to announce the launch of my EXCLUSIVE CRYPTO DOMAIN AUCTION! This private VIP auction will feature over $20,000,000 of the world’s most valuable domains for sale.
⏲️ Deadline for registration is Thursday, March 12th!
Register Now!https://t.co/Wl8ikimf3E
— Ryan Colby (@RJColby) February 25, 2020
After reading the social shares, I reached out to Ryan to see what he has been doing these past few years since leaving the domain space. Ryan was the founder of TokenFest, a conference held in San Francisco and Boston that had over 4,200 attendees and 135 exhibitors. Ryan told me TokenFest is currently on hiatus, and he will be returning to the domain space full-time as a broker and industry commentator. Ryan plans to leverage his blockchain connections to help domain registrants sell their domain names. He will be working under the eponymously named RyanColby.com brand.
The auction Ryan referenced is more like a combination of domain brokerage placement and private domain name sale held over a 90 day period. There is no auction platform being used, so I presume Ryan will seek out bidders and determine the highest bid. The main attraction in the auction is Tokens.com, a high value domain name that was reportedly sold for $500,000 in January of 2018. The reserve price on this domain name is $12 million.
I was told that other crypto domain names in the auction include CGK.com, DigitalVault.com, CryptoWallet.com, and Tokens.io. Ryan expects there to be approximately 200 domain names included in the auction. There will also be a crypto component to paying for domain names purchased in the auction. According to Ryan, “One unique aspect of this domain auction is we will be able to offer 3rd party escrow and settlement in crypto or fiat currency through our partners, making it much more attractive for domain buyers who are influential in the the crypto market to bid on names.”
In addition to brokering domain names, Ryan is also working on a podcast, found at DomainNameInsights.com. On the first episode, the main topic of discussion will be crypto and blockchain related domain names and how they are being utilized by companies in the space.
It’s good to see Ryan back in the domain space full-time. I am sure his experience in the crypto world will be helpful to him.
Really surprised to see the Currency evolution group missing from this domain auction news / event but apparently it’s not actually an ‘auction’ at all so I don’t know. All I know is it seems blockchain/ crypto domains have been HOT for like 5 yrs or more.
Polymath coin price decimated $500K to $12M OK Boomer
I can understand the need for a specific trusted digital brand name but IMO international currency exchanges will trade crypto, digital, fiat, or token currencies. These will be country centric exchanges the mass public require to understand guaranteed long tern ROI or asset backed brand trades be trusted. The days of money under the bed are numbered and not necessarily in dollars.
Paper money is essentially worthless, we all know it, but so is handing a few billion dollars over to some dude for a whatever coin.
Good news Cryoto is ok in India now, as of a court ruling being turned over yesterday.
My CryptoSkills.com should be in the auction.
It sold for $500k at the peak of crypto and now he wants $12million after that market has bust? Agree on the ‘ok boomer’ sentiments.