By George Ward
NanoLabs, the organization responsible for developing Nano (NANO) digital currency, has accused Coinbase, a crypto exchange, of trademark infringement in a recent lawsuit. In the case submitted to the California Northern District Court, NanoLabs claimed that Coinbase’s Nano BTC futures contract and Nano ETH futures contract products violated their trademark rights.
Infringement Affected Brand Identity – NanoLabs
The filing further contended that the infringement had harmed NanoLabs economically and weakened its brand identity, leading to “real damage and irreparable harm.” Colin LeMahieu established the digital currency Nano in 2014 under the original name RaiBlocks, which the company renamed Nano on January 31st, 2018.
Years after its inception, Coinbase introduced Nano-branded products, including the Nano BTC futures contract in June 2021 and the Nano ETH futures contract in August 2021. NanoLabs filed a complaint alleging that Coinbase’s BTC and ETH derivative products closely resemble its digital currency, Nano.
Furthermore, the complaint asserts that Coinbase advertises its products to the same clients as NanoLabs. The clients include those interested in using and investing in digital currencies.
Additionally, NanoLabs claims that Coinbase’s product trademarks are misleading to consumers and indistinguishable from its own. Moreover, the company’s filing contends that Coinbase was aware of the existence of Nano’s digital currency before releasing its products.
NanoLabs cited the email exchanges between the two companies beginning in 2018. The court documents said, “multiple departmental heads, associates, and directors, across various departments” at Coinbase knew about the Nano token as early as October 17th, 2018.”
NanoLabs Asks For $5M Compensation
According to previous reports, NanoLabs reached out to Coinbase to list its Nano token on its platform. However, Coinbase rejected the request.
Additionally, NanoLabs contended that Coinbase was aware that introducing Nano BTC on its derivates exchange would only increase consumer confusion. The court documents state this is especially problematic since Coinbase did not list Nano’s digital currency on its Exchange.
In addition, NanoLabs accused Coinbase of not providing any disclaimer or clarification to inform consumers that its product is different from the Nano digital currency. Meanwhile, NanoLabs has requested the court to issue an injunction against Coinbase, preventing the company from using the word “Nano” and any related trademarks or domain names.
Furthermore, NanoLabs is seeking damages of about $5 million from Coinbase and corrective advertising. NanoLabs has also asked to destroy any materials that infringe on the Nano trademark. In addition, it asks Coinbase to forfeit all profits from using Nano trademarks.
The recent lawsuit comes after a US Judge dismissed a case against Coinbase on February 1st. The lawsuit claimed that 79 tokens listed on the Coinbase exchange were securities.