Zap Africa, Nigeria’s leading non-custodial exchange, has initiated legal action against payment solution provider Paystack, to protect their brand identity from the unauthorised usage of its name. Paystack recently launched a consumer-focused product called “ Zap by Paystack,” which caused brand confusion.
“We’ve been building Zap for 3 years, intentionally and with full ownership. The name is trademarked. The product is live. The community is real,” said the CTO of Zap Africa, Moore Dagogo-Hart, in a statement on X.
Tobiloba Asu-Johnson, the CEO of Zap Africa, also took to his X page and stated, “Our name is trademarked, and we’re on it. Zap’s legal team will contact Paystack shortly.”
Zap has established itself as a key player in financial innovation by providing users with a secure way to trade their crypto. Some argue that introducing “Zap by Paystack” could create confusion among users and within the broader financial ecosystem. This sentiment has been echoed by some public members, with one X user, @_valking, stating, “Tbh, I don’t support lazy branding. If you’re building something new, at least come up with your own name. Copying an existing brand just screams lack of originality.”
As the case unfolds, only time will tell how this legal dispute will be resolved.