This past month has witnessed a surge in volatility in the international financial markets. Bonds issued by Italy, Greece, France and Spain are suddenly not the safe haven that they once were. The bankruptcy of MF Global this month was a reminder that the ghosts and zombies of 2008 -- Lehman Brothers, Bear Stearns, as well as AIG, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac -- have yet to be full exorcised. With national governments already undercapitalized, there is a growing risk that the network of fiat currencies may continue to lose value. So what can a globetrotting expatriate investor do to hedge against the flock of "Black Swans" that are increasingly visible on the horizon?
Online Real Estate is Portable Wealth
Domain Names are the real estate of the Internet. However, unlike physical real estate, domain names are portable. Also unlike physical real estate, domain names have very low maintenance costs. As a result, domains can be cost-effectively held for many years either for speculative gain or for future development purposes. Whereas a real estate investor might be able to invest in only one single real estate investment property, an investor in domain names can invest an equivalent amount of money across literally hundreds of development-grade domains, thereby diversifying risk and offering regular opportunities to sell off individual domains at a profit.
Domains are a logical component of a Balanced Investment Portfolio
Recently, there has been a great deal of investor interest in precious metals -- particularly in physical form. The overwhelming downside of physical metals is that there is an inherent security risk in that they cannot be discreetly transported over distance, and if lost, they are not readily recovered. By contrast, domain names can be transported instantly. Moreover, domain names can be easily recovered if they go missing and yet held anonymously. As the Internet becomes an increasingly large comfreponent of the global economy, the supply of development-grade domains remains finite. This is why domain name values have continued to appreciate over the last 10 days while the equity markets are still well below their peak.
Epik.com is a global leader in Domain Name Asset Management
One of the leaders in the Domain Name market is Seattle-based Epik.com. The company offers both private individuals and institutions with a managed approach to domain name investing. With Epik, investors can buy, manage and sell domains all from one integrated control panel available 24/7 via the web. The company owns more than 20,000 domains and builds hundreds of custom websites each week. The company is a respected leader in the Domain industry and serves more than 25,000 accounts on 5 continents.
Epik is led by a former Expat who has a knack for Building Businesses
Epik was founded by Rob Monster in 2009. Rob is a Dutch-American and was an expatriate manager for Procter & Gamble from 1994 to 1999, based in Kobe, Japan. In 1999, Rob left P&G to move to Seattle where he started Global Market Insite (GMI), a leader in the field of online market research. The company grew rapidly to annual sales of more than $75 million. The company was backed by 3 leading private equity groups and was later acquired by media titan WPP Group in an all cash deal. Rob also founded Monster Venture Partners which has backed more than a dozen startups to date.
How can a new domain investor get started?
There are still ample opportunities for new domain investors to get into the market on attractive terms. According to Rob Monster, domain investors should initially focus on categories and niches that match personal or professional interest areas. Investors can search or browse the inventory at the Epik Marketplace. Purchases made at the Epik Marketplace are instantly delivered to the buyer's Epik account.
Already own domain names?
Many people already own domain names. Epik is also a full-service domain name registrar that is well-equipped to manage an existing portfolio of domains. Moreover, domains registered with Epik have the further advantage of being able to list domains and websites in the Epik Marketplace commission-free.
For more information:
- Visit Epik.com and open a free account: http://epik.com/
- Visit the Epik Marketplace: http://marketplace.epik.com/
- Listen to Rob Monster's video interview with DomainSherpa.com:
- Contact Epik at info@epik.com or by calling +1-425-765-0077
More Expat Resources
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