TLDH raises $10 million for fresh TLDs
Fresh TLD applicant issues fresh shares to raise money, also confirms possibility of participating in private fresh TLD auctions.
Top Level Domain Holdings Limited, parent firm of Minds + Machines, has conditionally raised $10 million.
The firm today conditionally placed 110,375,276 fresh ordinary shares at 6p per share.
The money will be used as additional working capital, with much of it earmarked for settling contention sets.
The press release also confirms what firm CEO Antony Van Couvering commented on Reglike the prior week — that the firm is considering participating in private auctions for top level domains. Private auctions allow the losers to receive some of the money the winning bidder pays. If a fresh TLD applicant loses an “auction of last resort” with ICANN, it loses all of the money it paid to apply for the fresh TLD and doesn’t get any of the winning bidder’s payment.
The firm previously disclosed it raised up to $15 million for one (undisclosed) top level domain, in which the funding source will receive participation in revenue from the one domain. The firm is seeking similar deals.
The firm had £2.418 million in cash and cash equivalents on its books at the end of 2012.
