It’s been nearly two months since we broke the Epik story.
Almost immediately after that article came out, Epik crumbled.
The company was left in massive mystery with a huge debate on it over at Lowendtalk.
To give you a little recap:
- Epik was behind on their ICANN (domain registrar) bills, and bills in general.
- Epik was hacked with user information leaked.
- Epik owed a lot, and I mean a lot of money to their users, because of Masterbucks.
- There was an internal rift with Rob Monster being replaced at Epik, Inc.
At the time of the article it looked like bankruptcy of the company was the most likely option.
In only April, 2023, the Epik twitter account was saying (now deleted, available via archive) things such as:
Epik 2.0 is moving out of a monster’s shadow; we want to clarify that Rob Monster is NOT an officer, employee, or contractor for Epik. He is NOT involved in day-to-day operations. We’re committed to moving forward stronger than ever!
And beyond… with clearly no image of Rob Monster in Epik’s future.
However, it seems there’s been some maneuvering done to keep Epik alive in an alternate form.
Rob Monster simply made a 200 IQ move, he created a new LLC and bought Epik.
Here’s What’s Been Done to Epik Since:
The first part is that Epik Holdings, Inc is no longer Epik Holdings, Inc. Instead it’s the vastly different Epik, LLC.
According to Epik themselves…
Epik LLC has acquired and transferred Epik.com and the associated domain management platform from Epik Holdings Inc.
Epik Holdings, Inc. was founded in 2009 by current Chairman Robert Monster, whose tireless efforts built Epik.com into one of the world’s most recognizable domain registrars, best known for its commitment to free speech and privacy. Monster invested aggressively to build one the industry’s leading domain management platforms with a worldwide customer footprint and a reputation for legendary support.
In September 2022, Monster brought on a seasoned CEO, Brian Royce, to protect the interests of Epik stakeholders. Royce focused on tactical efforts to pivot Epik.com into a scalable and process-driven company. Epik Holdings Inc. was able to reduce costs and avoid bankruptcy on the way to securing the sale of the core registrar and hosting businesses to a logical acquirer.
“It’s been one of the biggest challenges and successes in my career so far to have saved Epik from financial collapse,” said Royce. “I got to know so many amazing people who were gracious enough to stick and work with us.”
Epik LLC will focus on the core features of Epik.com’s domain management platform and help solve web problems for Epik clients. By focusing on providing exceptional value, Epik LLC will become the obvious choice for anyone trying to register and maintain their domains assets and digital intellectual property.
As part of the transaction, Mr. Monster will return as CEO and majority shareholder of Epik Holdings Inc. The company plans to continue development of resilient infrastructure for digital empowerment with an initial emphasis on empowering the emerging parallel economy”. Epik Holdings Inc will change it’s name to Kingdom Ventures to avoid confusion, and develop key properties like Masterbucks, Amplify, Bitmitigate, and other vital services needed for digital empowerment.
“After a season of chaos, an orderly transition for the Epik registrar is well under way. The stage is being set for a stronger and more focused Epik. Upon review, the decision to hold the line on lawful free speech came with both blessings and challenges. While we did not always choose the easy path, we did our best”, said Monster.
So, basically, Rob Monster has acquired all of the assets that Epik Holdings, Inc owned… despite the fact they still owe a lot of money under Epik Holdings, Inc.
The new name of Epik Holdings, Inc is Kingdom Ventures, and Rob plans to continue developing Masterbucks, which is the key reason Epik crumbled last time.
It Was Almost Blocked
A man named Matthew Adkisson (Adkisson v. Epik Holdings INC et al) was owed $327,000 by Epik, because of Masterbucks.
He attempted to stop the deal by applying for a Temporary Restraining Order – however, Adkisson reached a settlement with Epik that lead to the case being closed, therefore, Epik to be sold.
Here’s the actual details of the sale:
That means Epik was sold for $4,905,700 USD with a documented $1,618,037.35 in debt.
TerraHost Was in Fact Included in This Deal
The entire Epik situation has been surrounded by nothing but mystery.
The TerraHost aspect is no different. When I reached out for comment, this is what the CEO of TerraHost said:
However, his signature is available on the Epik court documents sale right here:
I’m unsure why Andreas Haakonsen, CEO of TerraHost is extremely unwilling to admit to being owned by Rob Monster.
It should leave no doubt that TerraHost is in fact owned by Kingdom Ventures, or Rob Monster, until otherwise noted.
It’s Unclear Where the Funds Came From
As of 05/26/2023, Epik is now a Wyoming company under Epik, LLC:
In the court documents, Adkisson’s lawyer mentions this:
Adkisson’s lawyer goes on further in this email, stating:
“Epik and RA have negotiated a deal without us,” is a major point of contention…
Especially when JM Spear, the president of Registered Agents, INC is listed as the COO for Epik, LLC.
It’s very vague where the money came from to buy Epik, but Registered Agents, INC is almost certainly a bigger part of the story than just acting as a traditional registered agent.
You don’t just give out COO to your registered agent with no strings attached.
This Deal Gave Epik (And Rob Monster) A Lifeline
It bought him time.
He was able to pay off his obligations to both ICANN, and Adkisson.
But like publicly stated in the court documents…
Rob’s still in a lot of debt.
This debt is the result of an unlicensed "escrow" transaction involving @EpikDotCom.@Brianmroyce has already acknowledged owing this debt to @KathleenKalaf.
Let's cut the BS. Simply shifting assets around does not absolve you of being responsible for this debt. https://t.co/2O4evlr1Pt pic.twitter.com/deNe1Em4e6
— DataCube (@datacubecom) June 3, 2023
The tweet above is only one out of hundreds of tweets from customers owed by Epik.
Does Rob Monster still plan to pay back all of the other customers that are still left hanging?
Because for the time being only ICANN and Adkisson have really been paid…
To be honest with you… for the most part?
All That Really Happened Was a Name Change
It seems Rob Monster wants to acquire the assets, but not the liabilities.
It’s highly likely lawsuits are going to fly still yet.
This story is still very much developing and we’ll see how this plays out.
By the way, the full court document that his article heavily relies on is available for download here.
P.S. We reached out to Rob Monster, but didn’t hear back.
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