The dispute centers around a complaint filed by Foris, the operator of Crypto.com, with the World Intellectual Property Organization, claiming trademark rights to the domain
Crypto.com, a big name in the crypto world, has landed in hot water over claims about a domain name. The company was about to roll out a new sports trading platform when its operator, Foris Limited, based in Hong Kong, got slapped with a lawsuit by an Estonian tech firm, Domdevelo OÜ.
Domdevelo Alleges Domain Hijacking and False Claims
Domdevelo filed the lawsuit on December 20, 2024, in an Arizona federal court, reported Next.io. The company claims Foris tried to “reverse hijack” the domain name Cripto.com. The Estonian firm says they bought the domain fair and square for about $75,000 in November 2021 and have owned it since then.
At the core of the disagreement is a complaint Foris filed with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) asserting trademark ownership over the domain. This caused GoDaddy.com to temporarily halt the domain’s operations. Domdevelo claims Foris made major false statements in its WIPO submission, including saying it owned trademarks that belong to a different company, Foris Technology Pte Ltd in Singapore.
Domdevelo fought back against these allegations by submitting its own trademark request for “CRIPTO.COM” in March 2024. This application targets services in online betting, gaming, and casino operations — areas where Domdevelo claims Foris does not have an active business presence. The Estonian company also contends that “Cripto” is a common term in several languages highlighting its wider linguistic and cultural importance.
Crypto.com’s Sports Trading Launch Overshadowed by Domain Dispute with Domdevelo
Domdevelo is taking legal action to get a court to confirm its rightful use of the domain and to obtain damages, including lawyer fees, under the Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act. The company states that its domain purchases are valid and form part of its business plan to grow or resell digital assets. It points to other domains it owns such as Check.id and CryptoAlert.ai, as examples.
The legal troubles for Crypto.com come at the same time as a big business breakthrough. On December 23, 2024, the company rolled out a new sports trading product in the US, the first of its kind. This lets users guess and trade on how sports events will turn out using Crypto.com’s website and app. The service starts with big events like the Super Bowl and looks a lot like other regulated cryptocurrency event contracts that Crypto.com offers.
Kris Marszalek, the CEO of Crypto.com, was pumped about this new market presence. He called it a game-changing money product for people who love sports. He also said it fits with what Crypto.com wants to do overall — get more people to use cryptocurrency by coming up with new and interesting ways to use it.
