Sedo
KYC implementation and bringing the world's largest domain marketplace in line with new German banking regulation — for Sedo GmbH (United Internet).
The problem
Sedo GmbH, based in Cologne, runs the world's largest marketplace for domain trading — over 24 million listed domains, more than 3 million customers and a 60% share of the secondary market. As a United Internet subsidiary, Sedo settles financial transactions at considerable scale. Tightened requirements under the German Anti-Money Laundering Act (GwG) and the Payment Supervision Act (ZAG) forced a substantial rework of the marketplace: full know-your-customer (KYC) verification for every seller receiving a payout through the platform. The regulatory deadline was fixed, and the existing marketplace was not built for the requirement.
Our approach
We integrated KYC verification into the existing Sedo marketplace and adapted the payout processes to meet the regulatory requirements. The challenge was building a verification process into a live platform with millions of active users — without interrupting trading, and with a user experience that frames verification as something that builds trust rather than an obstacle.
- KYC verification workflow for sellers with identity checks and document upload
- Integration with Adyen as a regulated payment provider for compliant payouts
- Marketplace logic adapted to GwG and ZAG requirements
- Phased rollout: existing customers migrated gradually, new customers verified immediately
- User communication and onboarding flows for the verification process
- Monitoring and reporting for BaFin-compliant record-keeping
The impact
The KYC integration shipped on time, ahead of the regulatory deadline. Sedo continued to run the marketplace without interruption and has since been fully compliant with the tightened requirements of the German Anti-Money Laundering Act and Payment Supervision Act. Migrating existing customers in phases kept support volume and verification drop-off low. For Sedo the project was a critical compliance milestone — for Flashport, evidence that we deliver reliably in regulated environments well outside classic e-commerce.
Compliance project coming up?
We implement regulatory requirements inside existing platforms — on deadline, without interrupting operations.
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