Domain name Gold.co.uk raises record amount

In the United Kingdom, a record amount of £600,000 (converted to more than €820,000) was recently paid for the domain name gold.co.uk, according to the Telegraph. As far as we know, this is the highest amount ever paid for a web address ending in the British 'co.uk'. The domain name was purchased by Rob Halliday-Stein of BullionByPost, the UK's largest provider of physical bullion.

According to Halliday-Stein, the web address is literally worth gold.co.uk its weight in gold. The domain name still has to earn its money back, but the entrepreneur takes plenty of time for that. According to him, it is an investment for the next twenty years. "It may have some vanity in it, but it's a pragmatic form of vanity."

The domain name gold.co.uk contains a new website with which Halliday-Stein wants to reach the wealthiest customers who want to have gold and silver in storage. The domain name was registered in the early days of the internet by a man named Jack Gold, who apparently enjoyed recording his surname on the world wide web.

Gold domain name

Back in 2008, Jack Gold was approached by Halliday-Stein, who wanted to use the domain name for a new online store for physical gold. A sum of £40,000 was offered for the web address, but a deal did not materialise. That's when Halliday-Stein decided to start his company under the name BullionByPost, which grew to become the largest provider of physical bullion. This year, his company is expected to achieve a turnover of more than £100 million. The domain name changed hands several times in the meantime and only came into the hands of Halliday-Stein this summer for a much higher amount.

It's possible that higher amounts were paid for a UK domain name at some point, but this is the highest amount ever disclosed. The previous record for a UK domain name was £540,000, the price paid for Cruises.co.uk in 2008.