Multiple reports and public filings have shown a UK-based firm called 'A.B.C. IPHoldings South West' has successfully acquired a trademark for the name 'Bitcoin'. According to a merchant on Etsy, IP-Holdings sent a cease and desist order because they were selling Bitcoin-themed t-shirts.

UK Company Successfully Copyrights the Name 'Bitcoin'

This week cryptocurrency enthusiasts found out the name 'Bitcoin' had been trademarked using the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) in the UK on December 22, 2017. The news came as a shock to one merchant who was selling t-shirts on Etsy with the Bitcoin name and was told to stop his operations or be held liable in a court of law. The letter states:

It has come to our client's attention that you are offering for sale a variety of clothing bearing the Bitcoin trademark on Etsy.co.uk. [Our Client] has not authorised your use of the Bitcoin trademark on and in relation to clothing. Such use, therefore, amounts to trademark infringement pursuant to s10(1) of the Trade Marks Act 1994.        

Contacting the company is difficult as there is very little information on the London-headquartered firm called IP-Holdings — minus one other patented IP product called 'Westworld.' The trademark itself, filed this past December, reveals a list of goods that can't bear the name without permission such as adult clothing, infants' clothing, shoes, headbands, socks, and nearly everything that can be manufactured into a product. Trademark number 'UK00003279106 Bitcoin' was officially registered into the IPO's records on April 13, 2018.

The "BITCOIN" IPO trademark filed on December 22, 2017.