Namecheap

Last updated
Namecheap, Inc.
Namecheap Logo.svg
Type of business Private
Founded2000;25 years ago (2000)
Headquarters
Phoenix, Arizona
,
United States
Area servedWorldwide
CEORichard Kirkendall
Key peopleRichard Kirkendall (CEO)
Hillan Klein (COO)
Sergii Smirnov (CTO)
Industry Web service
Services Domain Name Registration, Web Hosting, VPN
URL www.namecheap.com

Namecheap is an American domain name registrar [1] and web hosting company, based in Phoenix, Arizona. The company was founded in 2000 by Richard Kirkendall. [2] The company offers domain name registration, web hosting, SSL certificates, CDN services, email hosting, privacy protection and other internet-related services.

Contents

Services

The company provides domain registration, transfers, and renewals. It also provides web hosting services, including shared hosting, VPS hosting, and dedicated servers. As of 2022, Namecheap manages over 10 million domains and has nearly 11 million customers. [3] [4]

It was reported in April 2013 that Namecheap had begun accepting Bitcoin as a payment method. [5]

In August 2023, Namecheap launched Spaceship.com, a domain registration and web hosting platform. [6] In 2018, it was the second-largest domain registrar globally, and by 2022, it was managing over 18 million domains. [7]

Controversy

On 15 February 2023, Delhi High Court ordered the Indian IT Ministry to block Namecheap and other domain registrars due to cybersquatting and non-compliance with India's IT Rules, 2021. [8] [9] [10]

Advocacy

ICANN price caps decision

In July 2019, Namecheap was one of the organizations that filed a reconsideration request to ICANN, asking for a review of the decision to remove price caps on .org and .info TLDs. [11] [12] The Independent Review Process panel concluded in December 2022 that ICANN had broken its own bylaws and made recommendations which included restoring the price caps. [13]

Namecheap went on to file a lawsuit in January 2024, claiming that ICANN “largely ignored” the majority of its recommendations. In October of that year, the Superior Court in Los Angeles ruled that the case could move forward, denying ICANN’s request to dismiss. [14]

In April 2025, Namecheap filed a motion asking the courts to force ICANN to negotiate with registries over price controls. In August of the same year, the court ruled against the request, denying the motion. [15]

Termination of service to Russian accounts

In February 2022, Namecheap announced that they would terminate services to Russian accounts due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, citing "war crimes and human rights violations". [3] Existing users were given a one-week grace period to move their domains. [16] The next day, the deadline was extended by another three weeks. [17] If users did not move their domains, their websites became inaccessible, even if the domain registration period had not yet passed.

The company also announced that it would be offering free anonymous domain registration and web hosting to all anti-war websites that engaged in protest in Russia or Belarus. [17]

Namecheap reported in March of 2022 that it had over 1,000 employees located in Ukraine. These employees were predominantly residents of Kharkiv, which had been heavily impacted by the invasion at that time, according to Domain Incite. [18]

References

  1. ↑ "InterNIC - Registrar List". InterNIC. 2017-04-23. Retrieved 2017-04-23.
  2. ↑ Spadafora, Anthony (October 2, 2019). "Namecheap Review". Tom’s Guide . Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  3. 1 2 "Hosting Provider Namecheap to Stop Services for Russians Domains". Cyber Security News. March 2, 2022. Retrieved March 3, 2022.
  4. ↑ Spadafora, Anthony (October 2, 2019). "Namecheap Review". Tom’s Guide . Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  5. ↑ Bustillos, Maria (April 1, 2013). "The Bitcoin Boom". The New Yorker . Retrieved October 8, 2019.
  6. ↑ "Spaceship - Product Information, Latest Updates, and Reviews 2025 | Product Hunt". 18 January 2025.
  7. ↑ "Spaceship User Reviews 2025 with Pros & Cons + Expert Opinion". hostdean.com. 2025-02-10. Retrieved 2025-02-10.
  8. ↑ Thapliyal, Nupur (2023-02-15). "Take Action Against Domain Name Registrars For Not Complying With IT Rules: Delhi High Court To IT Ministry". www.livelaw.in. Retrieved 2023-03-15.
  9. ↑ Mathi, Sarvesh (2023-03-14). "Why Namecheap and four other domain registrars are blocked in India". MediaNama. Retrieved 2023-03-15.
  10. ↑ Allemann, Andrew (2023-03-12). "Indian ISPs block access to major domain registrars". Domain Name Wire | Domain Name News. Retrieved 2023-03-15.
  11. ↑ McCarthy, Kieren (July 29, 2019). "Dot-org price-cap scrap latest: Now ICANN accused of snubbing registrars with 'sham' public comment process". The Register . Retrieved October 8, 2019.
  12. ↑ Binder, Matt (August 9, 2019). "How the battle over domain prices could drastically change the web". Mashable . Retrieved October 8, 2019.
  13. ↑ Murphy, Kevin (2023-01-25). "ICANN kicks the can on .org price cap defeat - Domain Incite". Domain Incite - Domain Name Industry News, Analysis & Opinion. Retrieved 2025-07-08.
  14. ↑ Murphy, Kevin (2024-10-22). "Namecheap scores win in .org price-cap lawsuit - Domain Incite". Domain Incite - Domain Name Industry News, Analysis & Opinion. Retrieved 2025-07-08.
  15. ↑ Murphy, Kevin (2025-08-04). "Namecheap loses attempt to bring back .org price caps - Domain Incite". Domain Incite - Domain Name Industry News, Analysis & Opinion. Retrieved 2025-08-29.
  16. ↑ Bode, Karl (February 28, 2022). "Namecheap Tells Russian Customers to Find Another Registrar Due to Russia's 'War Crimes'". Vice.com . Retrieved February 28, 2022.
  17. 1 2 Abigail Opiah (March 2, 2022). "Namecheap offers free web hosting and domain registration to Russian anti-war websites". Tech Radar. Retrieved September 8, 2025.
  18. ↑ Murphy, Kevin (March 1, 2022). "Namecheap boss goes nuclear on Russian customers". Domain Incite. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
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