Paypal to hire ‘biggest’ domain registrars in US

PayPal is in talks with a major domain name registrar to hire the biggest domain registrators in the United States, including those based in the states of California and New York, to register the world’s biggest financial services firms.

In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), PayPal said it has agreed to pay $1.9 billion in cash for the firms, which it described as the “biggest” in the country.

PayPal said the firms would be based in Los Angeles, New York City, Miami, Chicago and the Bay Area.

“PayPal has been a leading provider of financial services to the American public for over a century,” the company said.

“This agreement includes substantial commitments for our top domain registrants and the many other companies that offer high-quality, cost-effective domain name services.”

The move follows a week of tension between PayPal and the industry over how to handle the growing number of legal disputes between the company and some of its domain registries, including .com and .net, which have filed legal actions accusing the company of illegally charging fees for the registration of financial-services companies.

Last month, PayPal said a class-action lawsuit filed against it by several registrants was a fraud.

The company, which has a total of about 11 million registered domains, has previously struggled with legal disputes over domain names.

Payment processors like PayPal, which declined to provide an estimate of the price for the new arrangement, said the new deal will help the registrants keep their domains up to date.

“Our new registrants will continue to be able to manage their domain names and ensure the integrity of their customers’ funds,” the filing said.

The companies will also be able “to provide support and assistance for the registrant’s business operations, including the purchase of domain names, the development of new registrant partnerships and the maintenance of registrar assets.”

PayPal, the world leader in online payment services, said it expects the new registrar deal to be completed “in the coming months.”