A look at unstopped domains, the newest crypto unicorn, and how it compares to Ens

Unstoppable Domains is a San-Francisco-based digital identity platform. The Web3 start-up was launched in September 2019 and has quickly risen through the ranks, surpassing the likes of ENS and other such name services. On July 27, 2022, the web3 startup even closed a $65 million Series A funding round. The round was led by Pantera Capital and took the company to a $1 billion valuation.

What does Unstoppable Domains do?

Unstoppable Domains works just like ENS. It offers to convert the complex alphanumeric private key of a crypto wallet into URL-based domain names. For example, it can map machine-readable wallet addresses like ‘3FZbgi29cpjq2GjdwV’ to a human-readable name like ‘XYZ.coin’. This helps facilitate crypto payments.

These usernames are offered as NFTs and can be traded on secondary markets. This allows users to buy usernames, hold onto them and sell them at a better price later. This is very much like buying domain names in Web2. So far, Unstoppable Domains has registered 2.5 million domains and entered into 300 partnerships with leading web3 companies. It has received over $80 million in revenue since its launch in 2019.

Unstoppable Domain’s business partnership

Last month, Unstoppable Domains partnered with crypto payment firm MoonPay. The pairing allows MoonPay users to send and receive digital tokens using shorter and more manageable domain names instead of long and complex wallet addresses. In August 2021, Circle, which operates the USDC stablecoin, partnered with Unstoppable Domains to implement simple and easy-to-read ‘.coin’ usernames for USDC payments.

Ethereum Name Service is not a rival

Unstoppable Domains’ unicorn status comes within weeks of a sharp increase in ENS domain registrations. Demand for ENS domain names grew by over 200 percent in the first week of July. Registrations seem to have increased after the domain “000.eth” was taken for 300 ETH or $315,000. During this period, Ethereum gas fees also dropped significantly, which could be another reason for the jump in registrations.

Driven by the increasing sales, ENS’s daily earnings rose to over $680,000. That’s quite a positive trend in the current bear market.

Even with such numbers, however, Unstoppable Domains does not see ENS as a rival. The company is working to improve crypto accessibility and supports any firm that can help in this regard. “We support anything that helps get to a world where people own their digital identity and own their digital property online,” Unstoppable Domains founder and CEO Matthew Gould told Decrypt.

Unstoppable Domains vs ENS

Unstoppable Domains has certain advantages over Ethereum Name Service. For example, with ENS, domain owners pay for a certain number of years, after which they must renew the service. Since ENS is built on the Ethereum blockchain, the purchase and renewal transaction will incur gas fees.

On the other hand, Unstoppable Domains provides usernames forever. Once purchased, they are yours forever. Since it is built on Polygon, buying a username is faster and cheaper than Ethereum.

Also, getting an ENS username can be a bit complicated. First, users must have an external crypto wallet. Only then can they purchase an ENS URL and link it to their wallet address. But with Unstoppable Domains, your username acts as a wallet. This makes it easier for first-time crypto users.

The advantage of ENS, however, is that it is run by a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO). Therefore, instead of centralized management, users vote on future guidelines for the DAO and can also submit their own proposals. This allows the community to decide how the DAO is run and dictate its future.

In terms of pricing, both services offer domains starting at $5. However, the prices can vary depending on the domain name and in some cases can reach very large amounts.