Upstox Gets Relief From Delhi HC In Trademark Infringement Case

SUMMARY

The Delhi HC recognised the potential for irreparable harm to the company if immediate judicial intervention was not granted

In its order, the HC prohibited the entities from using Upstox's trademarks, domain names, social media handles, and any deceptively similar identifiers

Upstox had approached the HC against unidentified individuals, who were operating fraudulent websites and social media groups impersonating the company

The Delhi High Court (HC) has granted an interim injunction in favour of Upstox, restraining unknown entities from infringing upon the online brokerage platform’s registered trademarks and copyrighted materials.

The brokerage had approached the HC against unidentified individuals, who were operating fraudulent websites and social media groups impersonating the company.

The impersonation was done using Upstox’s brand name, logo, and copyrighted images to deceive customers, leading to financial losses and reputational harm to the platform.

The court acknowledged the prima facie evidence presented by Upstox and recognised the potential for irreparable harm to the company if immediate judicial intervention was not granted.

In its order, the HC prohibited the entities from using Upstox’s trademarks, domain names, social media handles, and any deceptively similar identifiers. It also directed domain registrars to suspend the infringing domain names and disclose the registrants’ details, including KYC documents and payment information.

The next hearing in the matter is scheduled on May 20.

It is pertinent to note that Upstox cautioned investors against impersonation scams and launched a comprehensive awareness campaign to educate and protect its customer base last year.

Founded in 2009 by Kavitha Subramanian, Raghu Kumar, Ravi Kumar and Shrinivas Viswanath, Upstox is an investment and trading platform with a customer base of over 1.3 Cr. It has raised a total funding of $60.25 Mn to date.

In May last year, it also forayed into the insurance distribution space.

On the financial front, Upstox claimed to have achieved profitability in FY23 with a consolidated profit of over INR 25 Cr. Its broking revenue jumped 44% to cross the INR 1,000 Cr mark, while EBITDA surpassed the INR 200 Cr mark.

While Upstox has scaled up on the investment tech front, it faces stiff competition from the likes of Zerodha, Groww, PhonePe, Paytm, among others, across various verticals.