What is .softbank?
Brand TLDs operate under Specification 13 of ICANN's registry agreement. It lets a trademark owner keep every second-level name for itself, so you won't find .softbank names for sale at any registrar.
ICANN's records put the delegation of .softbank on January 16, 2016. Like most of the newer endings, it was applied for in the 2012 New gTLD Program round and its registry agreement was signed on July 2, 2015.
Under the hood, the root zone points to 4 name servers for .softbank, 3 of them reachable over IPv6. The delegation is DNSSEC-signed, so resolvers can verify that answers for .softbank haven't been tampered with on the way. Registration data is published over RDAP and WHOIS (the WHOIS server is whois.nic.softbank).
.softbank FAQ
What country is .softbank?
None. .softbank is a generic top-level domain, so it isn't tied to any country.
Who owns the .softbank domain extension?
SoftBank Group Corp. operates .softbank as its registry, under a registry agreement with ICANN.
When was .softbank created?
.softbank was delegated to the DNS root zone on January 16, 2016.
Is .softbank a valid domain?
Yes. .softbank is an active top-level domain in the DNS root zone, delegated in 2016, so .softbank addresses work in every browser.
Can I buy a .softbank domain?
No. .softbank is a brand TLD under ICANN Specification 13, so names are reserved for SoftBank Group Corp.
Is .softbank DNSSEC-signed?
Yes, the root zone holds a DS record for .softbank.
Sources
Data from IANA root zone version 2026102000. Last changed June 20, 2023. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.
