An escrow holds the buyer's money while the seller transfers the block, and pays the seller once the registry has recorded the block under the buyer. It protects the payment, not the block: it checks neither the block's reputation nor its routing. No registry offers escrow, so the buyer and the seller choose a provider and write the release condition into their purchase agreement.
How an escrow fits a transfer
| Step | What happens | How long |
|---|---|---|
| Agreement | Buyer and seller sign the purchase agreement: the block, the price, the release condition, a longstop date and who pays which fees | A day or two |
| Onboarding | Both parties pass the escrow provider's company checks | From one or two days to about two weeks, by provider |
| Funding | The buyer pays into the escrow, and the provider confirms the funds to the seller | Usually a few days |
| Filing | The seller files the transfer: in the RIPE NCC's LIR Portal, in ARIN Online, or in MyAPNIC, where the recipient then has 30 days to acknowledge it | A day |
| Registry review | The registry checks the documents and, at the RIPE NCC, the EU sanctions list | The RIPE NCC: "In most cases, a transfer is completed within one or two business days" once the documents are complete. ARIN: within two business days of the signed agreement and its fees |
| Verification | The buyer, or the escrow, checks that the registry's public record shows the whole block under the buyer | A day |
| Release | The escrow pays the seller | One to five business days, by currency |
Registry fees are separate from the escrow's. The RIPE NCC charges nothing for a transfer. ARIN charges the seller $500 before it starts and the buyer from $187.50 for a /24. APNIC charges the buyer 20% of the yearly fee for the resources, before it updates its database.
A transfer between registries takes longer, since both registries review it and update their records on an agreed date. How each registry handles transfers is on its own page: the RIPE NCC, ARIN and APNIC.
The release condition
Write it into the purchase agreement before anyone pays:
- Release on registration, when the registry's public record shows the whole block under the buyer's organization, not on signature.
- A short inspection window, a business day for example, after which the escrow releases if the buyer has not objected.
- A longstop date with an automatic refund if the registry has not completed by then.
- Who pays what: the escrow's fee and each registry's fees.
- Optionally, a small holdback until the seller's ROAs and reverse DNS for the block are withdrawn, so the buyer's own can take over.
What an escrow protects, and what it does not
It protects against:
- Non-delivery. If the transfer is not completed, the buyer's money comes back.
- Non-payment. The seller files only after the funds are confirmed, and the payment cannot be recalled.
- The holder failing, where the money is held apart from the provider's own: in a notary's third-party account, a law firm's foundation or a safeguarded account.
It does not check:
- The block's reputation: blocklist history, abuse reports, geolocation. Check the block before you pay in.
- Routing: an escrow creates no ROAs or reverse DNS, and stale ROAs from the seller can make the buyer's announcements invalid.
- The seller's right to sell beyond the registry record. A letter of authorization does not prove it.
- What the registry decides, or what it decides later: the RIPE NCC can deregister resources obtained with false information or a fraudulent request, long after the money has been released.
Escrow services you can use
Twelve services and accounts that could hold the money for an IPv4 purchase between businesses, checked on 17 October 2026. We do not endorse any of them. Fees and terms change, so read the current ones, and look the provider up in its regulator's register yourself.
Online escrow services
| Service | Based in, and regulated by | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Escrow.com | United States; licensed in US states, Australia and Canada, not in the EU | Has its own flow for IPv4 transfers, and is the third-party escrow that IPv4 brokers mention. Fees fall from 2.6% to 0.7% with the deal's size; euros accepted |
| Transpact | United Kingdom; the FCA | Flat fees, payment in euros by SEPA, EU bank accounts accepted |
| Tazapay | Singapore; the Monetary Authority of Singapore | Escrow for businesses, for cross-border trade. Transaction and settlement fees published in its help center; ask for the escrow fee on a one-off deal |
| Trustap | Ireland; funds held by Stripe | Takes digital goods and business accounts, but its pricing is built for platforms: confirm a one-off deal first |
Dutch professional accounts
| Account | Rules | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| A notary's third-party account | Article 25 of the Wet op het notarisambt | Held apart from the notary's own money by law, but a notary may use it only where its own work gives rise to the payment |
| A law firm's Stichting Beheer Derdengelden | The Verordening op de advocatuur | Only as part of a matter the firm itself handles |
Escrow agents for larger deals, none of which publishes a minimum or a fee
| Agent | Based in, and regulated by |
|---|---|
| CSC, through Intertrust Escrow and Settlements B.V., ABN AMRO's former escrow business | The Netherlands; De Nederlandsche Bank |
| TMF Group | The Netherlands; De Nederlandsche Bank, since September 2025 |
| Vistra | The Netherlands; De Nederlandsche Bank |
| JTC | The Netherlands; De Nederlandsche Bank, since October 2024 |
| Shieldpay, used through law firms | United Kingdom; the FCA |
| GLAS, for international deals | United Kingdom |
Some names that come up are gone: Payoneer Escrow, formerly Armor Payments, stopped in 2018, and Dan.com closed in June 2025. Domain marketplaces such as Sedo hold domain sales only.
Spotting a fake escrow
Fake escrow sites are an established fraud. Be wary when:
- the other party insists on one particular escrow site you have not heard of;
- the payment goes to a person rather than a company, or by a method that is hard to trace;
- the site claims years of business on a recently registered domain, or shows a license number you have not checked with the regulator.
Look the provider up in its regulator's register (the FCA, De Nederlandsche Bank, the Monetary Authority of Singapore) at an address you find yourself, and confirm payment instructions through a channel you already trust.
Where RTM Networks fits
We normally sell without an escrow. Every purchase runs on a signed purchase agreement between you and us, which we draw up, with compliance and chain-of-custody checks on the block before it is signed, and we file the transfer with the registry ourselves, usually within hours of your payment. If you would rather pay through an escrow, we use one: you choose the provider, and we write the release condition into the purchase agreement with you. See buying IPv4.
Contact
Ready to buy IPv4 space?
Tell us the block size and registry you need and we will prepare a custom quote. We usually reply in 1-3 business hours.
