Walmart-backed digital payments company PhonePe and New Delhi-based fintech startup BharatPe have settled a five-year legal dispute over the use of "Pe" (pronounced Pay) as a suffix.

According to reports, the two companies said they had withdrawn all trademark objections against each other, facilitating the registration of their respective marks.

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

The conflict began in 2018 when PhonePe issued a legal notice to BharatPe asking it to stop using "Pe" in the Devanagari script in its brand name. In 2019, PhonePe took further legal action by filing a case in the Delhi High Court seeking an injunction against BharatPe's use of the "Pe" suffix.

“I am glad that 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,” says Sameer Nigam, founder and CEO of PhonePe.

In 2021, PhonePe also moved the Bombay High Court against BharatPe's holding company Resilient Innovations for using the PostPe extension for its Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) offering. However, this copyright infringement suit by PhonePe against BharatPe was dismissed by the court.