Delhi High Court Suspends Use of Bharatpay Trademark Due to Alleged Infringement

Delhi 28,march-In a major legal development, the Delhi High Court has temporarily suspended use of the “Bharatpay” trademark, following trademark infringement allegations by fintech company BharatPe. The interim order by the court, issued on March 25, 2025, follows after BharatPe expressed concerns that Bharatpay’s mark sounds and looks identical to its own trademark, which it has used in the payment services sector.

The contention is over the employment of identical-sounding trademarks by two fintech companies. BharatPe, a leading name in the UPI and payment services business, went to the High Court, alleging that Bharatpay, which provides the same payment services, was seeking to cause confusion among consumers by employing a mark identical to BharatPe’s highly recognized brand.

Justice Amit Bansal, who heard the case, held that the two marks were indeed phonetically similar and had visual and structural similarities. He said that a “prima facie” case of passing off and trademark infringement was made out in favor of BharatPe. The court further observed that the use of a similar mark by Bharatpay might lead consumers to believe its services belonged to BharatPe and thus was violative of trademark law.

Part of the interim relief included the court ordering the use of the “Bharatpay” trademark and the domain name “www.bharatpay.net” to be ceased by Bharatpay. The court also ordered the suspension of the domain and blocking of any mobile numbers related to it. BharatPe had previously issued a cease-and-desist notice to Bharatpay, which is said not to have been responded to, leading to the firm taking legal action.

The case is important as it highlights the growing legal issues in the fintech industry, where businesses providing similar services need to safeguard their brand names from possible confusion and infringement. BharatPe’s lawyers, headed by Senior Advocate Ankit Jain and advocates Mohit Goel, Sidhant Goel, Deepankar Mishra, Kartikeya Tandon, and Abhishek Kotnala, prevailed in the argument for the interim injunction.

The case is set to be heard on September 10, 2025, when the court will scrutinize the case in depth.

This judgment is an important reminder for companies operating in competitive sectors, particularly in new emerging sectors such as fintech, to make sure their trademarks are unique and guarded against unauthorized use that can ruin their brand reputation and consumer trust.