SBF Allegedly Spent Seven Figures on Uniswap Domain Before Legal Loss

Key Points

• Hayden Adams, Uniswap’s creator, alleges Sam Bankman-Fried purchased Uniswap.com for a seven-figure amount.
• The domain reportedly redirected traffic to SushiSwap, a rival decentralized trading platform.
• In September 2021, WIPO ruled the domain must be transferred to Uniswap Labs due to bad-faith operation.
• Official WIPO documentation doesn’t name Bankman-Fried as the domain owner.
• Today, Uniswap.com automatically forwards users to Uniswap’s legitimate platform.

Hayden Adams, the creator of Uniswap, has alleged that Sam Bankman-Fried previously acquired the Uniswap.com domain for a seven-figure price before Uniswap Labs ultimately secured it through legal channels.

Adams shared this revelation in an X post dated September 21 while recounting the domain’s controversial history.

According to Adams, the initial domain holders demanded a seven-figure payment from Uniswap for the web address, which the project rejected.

Adams claims that Bankman-Fried subsequently purchased the domain at that price point, after which it began redirecting to a Uniswap protocol clone.

Domain Directed Traffic to Competing Platform SushiSwap

Public documentation validates that Uniswap.com was indeed forwarding visitors to SushiSwap during 2021.

SushiSwap emerged as a Uniswap clone and became a direct competitor in the decentralized exchange space.

Uniswap Labs initiated legal action regarding the domain in May 2021.

The World Intellectual Property Organization subsequently examined archived website versions and evidence demonstrating Uniswap.com directing to SushiSwap’s interface.

WIPO’s arbitration panel determined that Uniswap Labs held legitimate trademark rights to UNISWAP.

The panel additionally ruled that redirecting visitors to SushiSwap didn’t constitute lawful domain usage.

According to the panel’s findings, the redirect posed a genuine risk of consumers mistakenly believing Uniswap Labs had authorized, partnered with, or supported the competing service.

WIPO concluded the domain registration and use demonstrated bad faith.

On September 3, 2021, the arbitration panel mandated the transfer of Uniswap.com to Universal Navigation Inc., the entity operating Uniswap Labs.

This legal remedy didn’t require Uniswap Labs to financially compensate the respondent for the domain.

Official WIPO Files Don’t Mention Bankman-Fried

A critical element of Adams’ statement lacks independent verification in the official case documentation.

The WIPO ruling identifies the respondent as Registration Private, Domains By Proxy, LLC and Future XXX based in Hong Kong.

Bankman-Fried’s name doesn’t appear as the purchaser or registered owner of Uniswap.com.

The decision also doesn’t reference any seven-figure transaction amount.

Adams didn’t provide supporting documentation or name the seller in his social media statement.

However, Bankman-Fried did have documented ties to SushiSwap.

He briefly assumed control of the project during an internal governance situation in September 2020 when its pseudonymous creator transferred authority.

Bankman-Fried then supervised SushiSwap’s protocol transition before governance shifted to a multi-signature arrangement.

This historical connection lends circumstantial support to Adams’ assertion, though it doesn’t definitively confirm Bankman-Fried purchased Uniswap.com.

Currently, Uniswap.com redirects to the authorized Uniswap platform at app.uniswap.org.

Bankman-Fried is presently serving a 25-year federal prison term related to FTX’s implosion, while the 2021 WIPO proceeding contained no determinations regarding him individually.