BharatPe, PhonePe Settle Long-Standing Trademark Dispute Over ‘Pe’ Suffix

BharatPe Group and PhonePe Group on May 26 said that they have amicably settled all long-standing legal disputes pertaining to the use of the trademark with the suffix ‘Pe’.

Both companies had been involved in long-drawn legal disputes across multiple courts, over the course of the past five years. “The settlement will put an end to all open judicial proceedings,” according to a joint statement released on Sunday.

As a next step, the companies have already taken steps to withdraw all oppositions against each other in the trademark registry which will help them to proceed with the registration of their respective marks, it added.

Further, both entities will undertake to take other necessary steps to comply with the obligations under the settlement agreement in respect of all cases before Delhi High Court and Bombay High Court, according to the statement.

Rajnish Kumar, chairman of the Board, BharatPe, said, “This is a positive development for the industry. I appreciate the maturity and professionalism shown by the Management of both sides, working closely to resolve all outstanding legal issues and moving ahead to focus their energy and resources in building robust digital payment ecosystems.”

Sameer Nigam, founder and CEO of PhonePe, said, “We have reached an amicable resolution in this matter. This outcome will benefit both companies to move forward and focus our collective energy on growing the Indian fintech industry as a whole. I would like to thank Rajnish Kumar and his team for working with us to get to this positive outcome.”