Domain name and website escrow service
Buying or selling a domain name means coordinating a hand-off between strangers: the buyer does not want to pay before the transfer, the seller does not want to transfer before payment. Vaultion is a domain name and website escrow service paid in stablecoins: it locks the funds while the transfer happens, releasing them once the buyer confirms the domain is theirs — or letting a ruling decide if it stalls — from independent Kleros jurors or a Vaultion reviewer on Ethereum, or a Vaultion reviewer on every other network.
Start an escrowPayment and transfer, coordinated
Payment locked during transfer
Funds are committed in the contract before the seller starts the transfer, so the seller knows the money is real and the buyer’s payment is not released until the domain is in hand.
Release on confirmation
Once the buyer confirms control of the domain, they release the funds in a single on-chain transaction.
A ruling if the hand-off fails
If the transfer does not complete or the asset is not as described, either party opens a dispute and it is ruled on the evidence by independent Kleros jurors or a Vaultion reviewer on Ethereum, or a Vaultion reviewer on every other network.
What a clean domain hand-off needs
Vaultion escrows the payment, not the domain — the transfer itself happens at the registrar. These are the steps that make delivery verifiable so the release is straightforward.
Registrar transfer lock
Confirm the domain is unlocked and past any 60-day post-registration lock before funding. A locked domain cannot move regardless of the escrow.
Authorization (EPP) code
The seller provides the auth / EPP code to start the transfer. Release once the domain is actually in the buyer's account, not when the code changes hands.
WHOIS & account handoff
For account-based or marketplace sales, agree exactly what transfers — the domain, the registrar account, any linked email — and how the buyer verifies it.
What counts as delivered
“Delivered” is the buyer confirming control at their own registrar. Both sides can point to that as the release condition if a dispute is opened.
Domain escrow for the buyer, and for the seller
A domain sale is a hand-off between strangers who will probably never deal again. The escrow takes the first move away from both of you.
If you are buying a domain
You do not pay a seller you met on a forum and hope the push arrives. Your USDC or USDT sits in the contract, visible on the block explorer, until the domain is in your own registrar account and you release. If the seller stalls or sends the wrong name, you open a dispute instead of releasing, and the money stays locked until it is ruled on.
If you are selling a domain
You see the buyer’s payment committed on-chain before you unlock anything or hand over an auth code, so there is no chargeback after the name has gone. Send the buyer a payment link with the price filled in, transfer once it is funded, and if the buyer takes the domain and never releases you claim the payment when the review period ends.
Two ways a domain changes hands, and how long each takes
Vaultion escrows the payment, not the domain. The transfer happens at the registrar, and the review period you set should cover the path you are using.
Push within the same registrar
If buyer and seller both have accounts at the same registrar, the seller pushes the domain to the buyer’s account. It usually completes in minutes and avoids the transfer lock entirely. The buyer confirms the domain appears in their account, then releases. A few days of review period is plenty.
Transfer to another registrar with the auth code
The seller unlocks the domain and gives the buyer the authorization code; the buyer starts the transfer at their registrar. Under the ICANN Transfer Policy the registry completes it unless the losing registrar objects within five calendar days, and a transfer cannot proceed within 60 days of the domain’s creation or of a previous transfer. Check both before funding and set the review period to at least a week.
Selling a whole website, not just the name
A website escrow is the same escrow with a longer checklist. Write down everything that transfers: the domain, the hosting account or a copy of the files and database, the content, any linked email, social, analytics and ad accounts, and what happens to existing subscribers or customers. Treat the hand-off as complete only when the buyer has the site running on hosting they control. For a larger sale, split it into one escrow for the domain and one for the rest, so each part releases on its own evidence. The free escrow agreement template gives you the checklist to fill in.
Check the contract before you commit
Vaultion runs on a published, open-source contract that holds the funds — not Vaultion. You can read it and the locked balance on the block explorer before you send anything.
Frequently asked
Is there a domain escrow service that works in crypto?
Yes. Vaultion is a domain name escrow service paid in stablecoins: the buyer locks USDC or USDT in a smart contract, the seller pushes the domain at the registrar, and the buyer releases once the domain is in their account. The contract holds the money, not Vaultion.
Can I use escrow to buy or sell a website?
Yes. Treat the website the same way as a domain: list what transfers (domain, hosting, code, accounts), agree what a complete hand-off looks like, fund the escrow, hand over, and release on confirmation. Set the review period long enough to check everything works on the buyer’s hosting.
How long should the escrow review period be for a domain transfer?
Match it to the transfer path. A push within the same registrar usually completes in minutes, so a few days is enough. A transfer to another registrar can take up to five calendar days under the ICANN Transfer Policy, so set at least a week. A domain cannot be transferred within 60 days of its creation or of a previous transfer; check that before funding.
Can I use escrow for a domain I found on an aftermarket or forum?
Yes. Agree the price and the transfer path with the seller, create the escrow or have the seller send you a payment link, fund it, and release once the domain is in your own registrar account. The seller sees the payment locked on-chain before they transfer, which is usually what gets a private seller to agree.
Does Vaultion handle the domain transfer itself?
No — Vaultion escrows the payment, not the asset. You complete the domain transfer through the registrar as usual; the escrow holds the money until the buyer confirms the transfer is done, with Kleros as the fallback.
What if the seller never transfers the domain?
The buyer can open a dispute rather than release the funds; the evidence is reviewed by independent Kleros jurors or a Vaultion reviewer on Ethereum, or a Vaultion reviewer on every other network, and the contract enforces the ruling. Funds cannot be released to the seller without the buyer’s action or a ruling.
Can I escrow other digital assets this way?
Yes — any deal where a payment and a separate off-chain hand-off need to be coordinated works the same way. Vaultion holds the stablecoin payment while you handle the asset transfer.
What does it cost?
A tiered platform fee — 4% on smaller deals down to 2% on larger ones — is paid once when the escrow is created. What a dispute costs depends on the network. On Ethereum you choose at creation: Kleros charges a fee, paid in ETH by the party that raises the dispute, while a Vaultion reviewer costs nothing. On every other network a Vaultion reviewer handles it and there is no charge. Either way, no dispute means nothing extra to pay.
Lock a domain sale
Set up an escrow in a few steps. Funds stay locked in the contract until the deal is done or arbitration decides.
Create an escrow