The world of real-world assets (RWAs) on the blockchain has long been focused on tangible, physical items, from real estate to fine art and jewelry. Yet, an entire class of digital RWA has existed for decades, lying dormant and untapped, waiting for its DeFi moment. This asset is the internet domain, and a new protocol called Doma is now poised to unlock its full potential.
D3 Global, the company behind the Doma Protocol, has just launched its flagship applications, Mizu and Interstellar, on the testnet. These platforms are designed to do something unprecedented: transform traditional web domains, such as the familiar .com, .ai, and .xyz names, into liquid, tradable, and financially productive assets on the blockchain. BeInCrypto sat down with Fred Hsu, the CEO of D3, to discuss the vision, technology, and future of what his team calls DomainFi.
The vision: Unlocking the “original digital RWA”
The potential market for this new asset class is staggering. The global domain name market is currently valued at nearly $10 billion, but D3 aims to unlock a much larger dormant value by solving the industry’s fundamental problems.
Hsu describes this vision as nothing short of a revolution. “We’re transforming entire illiquid domain portfolios into dynamic, tradeable assets by bringing the domain industry onto Doma,” he explains.
“Think of it as bringing Wall Street sophistication to domain investing – suddenly a $15+ million dollar domain like chat.com can become accessible to retail investors with $500 to own and trade.”
This fractional ownership, combined with the ability to generate yield and trade seamlessly, introduces a level of financial opportunity that simply does not exist in web2. The core of this revolution lies in a simple yet profound premise: domains are the internet’s original real estate.
“Domains were literally the first scarce digital assets ever created—they’re literally the OG NFT,” Hsu states. He draws a powerful analogy to emphasize their value: an ultra-premium domain like chat.com, which sold for over $15 million, represents a prime location on the internet, much like a storefront in Times Square.
However, despite their inherent value, this asset class has “slipped under the radar” for a simple reason, a lack of modern infrastructure. The traditional domain aftermarket is slow, manual, and rife with illiquidity, high transaction costs, and a significant lack of transparency.
Doma Protocol aims to fix these three critical issues, thereby not just tokenizing domains, but “transforming an entire industry.”
Beyond web3 silos: The power of DNS compliance
While D3’s vision may sound similar to existing web3 naming services like Ethereum Name Service (ENS) or Unstoppable Domains, Hsu is quick to clarify a crucial distinction.
“ENS and Unstoppable Domains create new names that only work in some corners of web3. With Doma, we’re tokenizing the internet that already exists,” he says.
This is the key differentiator. D3 is not creating parallel web addresses; it is bridging the actual internet. The Doma Protocol works with real, traditional domains like .com and .ai that have established DNS functionality, proven brand value, and existing web traffic.
While other projects build in isolated web3 silos, Doma’s DNS-compliant architecture ensures that any domain tokenized on the protocol maintains its full internet functionality.
Hsu explains the technical magic behind this compliance:
“Doma’s DNS-compliant architecture means any domains tokenized on Doma maintain their full internet functionality. They still resolve to websites, handle email, and work with all existing web infrastructure.”
This is achieved by creating a bridge between web3 ecosystems and traditional DNS infrastructure, enabling ownership to be structured on-chain without sacrificing the domain’s underlying utility. The result is a powerful combination — the benefits of blockchain ownership and DeFi trading, while the domain itself remains fully functional on the internet.
This seamless interoperability allows Doma to operate across the largest web3 ecosystems, including Ethereum, Solana, Base, and Avalanche. This cross-chain functionality is essential for bringing a global economy on-chain, not just an asset class.
Interstellar and Mizu: The engine room of DomainFi
D3’s vision is brought to life through its two flagship applications, Mizu and Interstellar, which serve different but complementary functions on the Doma testnet. According to Hsu, the platforms are designed to “truly own and trade the Internet.”
He breaks down their roles: “Interstellar is a modern, DNS-compliant marketplace that lets you ‘own the Internet’ by acquiring valuable domains that can be instantly tokenized on Doma.” Think of Interstellar as the primary hub for buying and selling these digital properties. For a domain investor, it’s a modern marketplace designed for the on-chain era.
Mizu, on the other hand, is where the financial innovation truly takes shape.
“Mizu is the first DeFi launchpad specifically designed for domains and lets you ‘trade the Internet’ by turning domains on Doma into dynamic financial instruments.“
This is where the magic of fractionalization happens. An expensive, high-value domain can be split into smaller, more accessible tokens (ERC-20 tokens), allowing multiple investors to share ownership and trade them with unprecedented liquidity. This solves the core problem of illiquidity that has plagued the traditional domain market for years.
Beyond fractionalization, these tokenized domains can be used as collateral in DeFi protocols or participate in automated yield generation. D3 is not just changing how domains are bought and sold; it is creating an entirely new asset class where every domain, from a simple .xyz to a premium .com, can become a productive, income-generating asset.
Building the rails: The path to mainnet
As D3 prepares for the mainnet launch, its focus is on building a robust ecosystem and a strong network of partnerships. This requires a seamless bridge between the web2 domain world and the web3 blockchain environment.
Hsu assures that the transition process is handled entirely on-chain. The Doma Protocol’s architecture allows domain NFTs to be split into fungible ERC-20 tokens, with the process managed by smart contracts. This maintains the integrity of DNS-related custody and compliance, abstracting ownership from trading.
Partnerships are crucial to this effort. D3 has already announced a strategic partnership with registrar NicNames, which brings vital infrastructure and innovation to the ecosystem.
“They understand both the technical and business opportunity of web3,” Hsu says. He also reveals a partnership with Europe’s largest registrar, InteNetX/IONOS Group, with more to be announced in the coming months.
“Our goal is to build a thriving ecosystem of partners from the domain industry as well as the largest web3 communities. We’re building the rails to bring an entire economy onchain, not just an asset class.”
For high-net-worth domain investors, D3 has also launched the Doma Prime program. Hsu describes it as a “white-glove” service designed to provide top domain owners with priority access, bespoke liquidity terms, and advanced analytics tools. “Think of it as our version of private banking for domain investors,” he says.
The program matches D3’s domain industry expertise with its tokenization and DeFi technologies, creating a platform that is uniquely suited to the needs of institutional and high-value investors. Prime members will be key partners in building the most comprehensive domain investment platform ever created.
A new era of digital ownership
D3 Global’s mission is clear, to bridge the gap between web2 and web3 by bringing the foundational layer of the internet, the domain, on-chain. By solving the age-old problems of illiquidity, high barriers to entry, and lack of transparency, the Doma Protocol, with its applications Mizu and Interstellar, is poised to create a new, massive real-world asset class.
As the testnet progresses toward mainnet, the promise of DomainFi is becoming a tangible reality. In a world where digital assets are becoming increasingly important, D3 is ensuring that the internet’s most valuable real estate can be owned, traded, and utilized like never before. The future of digital ownership is here, and it’s running on a .com.
Source: https://beincrypto.com/d3-global-doma-protocol-domains-defi/