Domain firm raises $5 million to bridge web3 and DNS
Firm’s founders have longtime experience in the domain name industry.
D3 Global has raised a $5 million seed round as it seeks to bridge web3 domain names to the “real” web.
The firm plans to apply for and acquire fresh top level domains during ICANN’s upcoming application window to offer secure identities that are natively supported on all browsers and devices. It states it will do this in partnership with web3 ecosystems and for the benefit of their communities.
D3 states it has patent-pending technology that will introduce interoperability between web2 and web3.
With the next round of TLDs still a number of years away, the firm also plans to introduce “the industry’s first on-chain marketplace for legacy domains, supporting the tokenization of over 1,000 TLDs such as .COM, .NET, and .XYZ to bring greater liquidity to domain investors. This move is expected to significantly reduce the friction traditionally seen in domain name transactions, such as low transparency, high broker fees, transfer delays, and escrow services.”
The firm’s founders have deep roots in the domain name industry.
CEO Fred Hsu was co-founder of Oversee.net, the firm behind the once-popular DomainSponsor domain monetization platform. He started attending domain events earlier this year, and it was only a matter of time ahead of he dipped his toe back into the business.
The firm also counts Paul Stahura, co-founder of Identity Digital, as an investor and advisor. This is interesting since Stahura has come out against many of the web3 naming initiatives that create collisions with real top level domains. Clearly, he sees a way to bridge blockchain-based domains with main-root TLDs.
Shayan Rostam, CEO of fresh top level domain firm Internet Naming Firm, is the Chief Commercial Officer.
Shima Capital led the round with participation from Lightshift, Dispersion Capital, VentureSouq, Infinite Capital, MZ Web3 Fund, Kestrel0x1, Nonagon, C² Ventures, Arthur Hayes’ Maelstrom, and Stahura.
