Technical guide
IPv4 Trading Guide: How to Buy and Sell IPv4 Safely
Sell IPv4 directly to LARUS for cash, without a broker. Compare trading and leasing, understand block value, and plan continued use with sale-and-leaseback.
Get a cash offerYour IPv4 addresses can fund your next network upgrade, expansion or product launch. Sell directly to LARUS to turn their value into cash, without appointing a broker or waiting for one to find a buyer. If your customers still depend on those addresses, a sale-and-leaseback lets you release capital and plan continued use together.
What is IPv4 trading?
IPv4 trading is the buying and selling of IPv4 address blocks between organisations. The commercial transaction puts a value on the block; the relevant registry transfer updates its registration. For a seller, the useful result is cash. For a network operator, the useful result is address capacity that supports reachable services.
A broker can introduce buyers and sellers, but you do not need that extra layer to sell to LARUS. LARUS is your direct buyer and pays for the addresses it acquires. You discuss the block, offer, payment and handover with the party buying it.
Why IPv4 addresses have market value
Existing networks still need IPv4
IPv4's 32-bit format contains roughly 4.3 billion addresses. The public address pool is finite, while hosting services, cloud platforms, ISPs and customer applications continue to use it. IPv6 expands what networks can do; it does not instantly replace every customer connection or application built around IPv4.
Unused capacity can finance your next priority
A block left idle cannot pay for new servers or a network upgrade. Selling converts that capacity into a cash payment. Even an active block may offer an opportunity: sell it and lease back the capacity you need, so the capital can work elsewhere in your business.
A current offer is more useful than an old price
Block size, registry, address history, transfer route and buyer demand all affect an offer. A historical price chart cannot tell you what your block will realise today. Start with a direct offer for your actual prefix, and compare the proceeds with the value of keeping capital tied up in it.
How to sell IPv4 addresses directly to LARUS
Get cash from a buyer, not a marketplace listing
Give LARUS the prefix or block size, its registry and a way to reach you. You get a direct conversation about a purchase, rather than another listing waiting for interest. The offer gives you a concrete basis for deciding what the money could do for your business.
Keep the addresses your services rely on
You do not have to treat selling and staying online as competing goals. Tell us which addresses are active and which applications, APIs or customers use them. A sale-and-leaseback brings the cash decision and continued-use plan into the same conversation, before the handover.
Make the payment and handover work for you
Agree the offer, payment milestones and transfer plan directly with LARUS. Matching registration details and an accurate view of current use help the team move the transaction forward. You have one buyer to coordinate with, without a broker relaying each question between parties.
From an IPv4 block to a cash payment
- Share your block. Send the prefix, registry and whether you want to sell unused space or keep using it after the sale.
- Review a direct offer. Discuss the purchase amount and payment schedule with LARUS, the buyer.
- Plan continued service. Identify active prefixes, routing, DNS and allowlists so the handover supports the applications that matter.
- Complete the transfer and payment. LARUS coordinates its purchase around the applicable registry transfer and the agreed milestones.
You receive sale proceeds as a purchase payment instead of collecting rental income over time. Start with a cash offer for your IPv4 block.
Release capital without leaving continuity to chance
The market value of an IPv4 block and the strength of the registry relationship are different things. Paying for addresses does not remove the registry layer above them. As Lu Heng explains in his Note on the nature of IP addresses, economic value and administrative control must be understood separately.
LARUS brings the purchase and continued operation together. Its position for the covered address estate is backed by Cloud Innovation's court-ordered AFRINIC shareholder position and the exclusive mandate appointing LARUS as the commercial, operational and technical platform. For your business, that means a first-party operator to discuss continuity with, alongside the cash offer.
Buying IPv4? Start with the network you need to run
If your goal is to launch servers, connect customers or expand a cloud platform, usable capacity matters more than a purchase transaction. Define the number of addresses, deployment locations and applications first. Then compare a purchase with LARUS IPv4 leasing and Continuity: Unlimited IPv4 with capital available for the rest of your network.
A purchase budget needs to account for the block, transfer work and ongoing registry and operational costs. A leasing budget makes capacity a recurring service cost. Compare them over the period you actually expect to use the addresses, including growth, rather than assuming buying delivers permanent control or leasing is only a short-term solution.
For the current service options, use live IPv4 pricing and capacity plans. For more context, read what businesses should know about buying IPv4 and leasing versus buying.
The checks that help your addresses work on day one
- Routing history: identify who announces the prefix and how that announcement will continue or change.
- Address reputation: review filtering and prior-use history against the services you need to run.
- Registration records: align the block and organisation details so the transfer can progress without avoidable back-and-forth.
- Operational dependencies: map DNS, customer allowlists, geolocation requirements and application connections before moving a live block.
These details turn an address transaction into usable network capacity. Bring your operational priorities into the offer discussion so cash, timing and service continuity can be planned together.
IPv4 trading, leasing and sale-and-leaseback
| Your goal | Route | What it gives your business |
|---|---|---|
| Release cash from unused addresses | Sell directly to LARUS | A purchase payment without a broker finding a buyer for you |
| Release capital and keep operating | Sell and lease back | Sale proceeds with a continued-use plan for the capacity you need |
| Add address capacity | Lease from LARUS | Unlimited IPv4 without funding a block purchase |
| Evaluate a direct acquisition | Buy and transfer a block | Registered resources to operate, with the registry relationship and ongoing costs still to manage |
Bring the information that gets your offer moving
Start with the prefix, registry and your preferred timing. If the block is active, tell us what must keep working. If you have more than one block, identify which can be sold outright and which you want to keep using. This gives LARUS a clear picture for a useful offer, without making you complete a technical migration before the first conversation.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Do I need a broker to sell IPv4 addresses?
No. You can sell directly to LARUS. LARUS buys the block, so your offer and handover discussions are with the buyer.
Can I sell addresses that are still in use?
Yes. Discuss sale-and-leaseback with LARUS so you can release their value and plan continued use for the services that depend on them.
How much are my IPv4 addresses worth?
A direct offer reflects your block, registry, history and current demand. Send the prefix to get a figure for your addresses instead of relying on a fixed price from an old article.
When do I receive the money?
The payment schedule is agreed directly with LARUS as part of the purchase. You can plan around the sale proceeds and transfer milestones rather than waiting for a broker to locate a buyer.
Why do businesses still use IPv4 alongside IPv6?
Many customer connections and applications still depend on IPv4 reachability. Operators can expand IPv6 while maintaining that access. Our IPv4 exhaustion guide explains the address-supply background.
Is trading the same as leasing?
A sale turns the seller's block into a purchase payment. Leasing provides address capacity through ongoing payments. Sale-and-leaseback combines a sale with continued use, so you can separate the cash decision from the capacity your network needs.
Put your IPv4 value to work
Your next step can be simple: show LARUS the block, explain what you want to achieve and get a direct cash offer. Sell unused space, or bring continued use into the same deal. Your business gets a buyer, a practical path forward and capital for its next priority.
References
Sell directly to LARUS
Put your IPv4 value to work.
Get a direct cash offer for your block. Sell unused space or include continued use in the same conversation.