OANDA, GAIN Capital lock horns over Patent Board decision
There has been some development in the patent infringement lawsuit brought by multi-asset online trading company OANDA against online trading major GAIN Capital (which is now owned by StoneX), which continues at the New Jersey District Court. In this lawsuit, OANDA alleges that GAIN infringes two patents, U.S. Patent Nos. 7,146,336 (“the ’366 patent”) and 8,392,311 (“the ’311 patent”).
Let’s recall that, as a part of its efforts to dismiss the case, in September 2020, GAIN filed covered business method (CBM) petitions for each of the two Asserted Patents. GAIN’s petitions requested that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) invalidate every claim of the Asserted Patents.
OANDA has informed the Court that, on March 18, 2021, the PTAB denied institution of the petitions for covered business methods review. FX News Group has seen the PTAB documents and can confirm that, in fact, the PTAB has denied the review that GAIN had requested.
According to OANDA, the PTAB decision renders GAIN’s motion to stay moot. Put otherwise, after the PTAB decision, OANDA believes that its patent infringement case against GAIN should proceed as normal.
GAIN Capital, however, disagrees. This becomes clear from a letter filed by GAIN’s counsel on March 21, 2021.
While GAIN admits that the PTAB’s decisions denied institution of further proceedings before the PTAB, it notes that when the PTAB denies institution, a petitioner has 30 days to file a request for rehearing by the PTAB. GAIN notes that it is considering whether to file a request for rehearing which would be due on April 19, 2021. Accordingly, its motion to stay the patent infringement lawsuit is not yet moot.
GAIN requests that the Court maintain the status quo until at least resolution of the defendants’ decision on any rehearing petition.
Let’s recall that GAIN is seeking to dismiss OANDA’s complaint. The crux of the motion to dismiss is that OANDA has failed to state any proper claim for infringement, including failing to accuse any specific product of the defendants of infringement.
OANDA claims GAIN infringed two patents: the ’311 Patent and the ʼ336 Patent.
On March 5, 2013, the United States Patent and Trademark Office issued United States Patent No. 8,392,311, entitled “Currency Trading System, Methods, and Software.” The ’311 Patent teaches, among other things:
In one aspect, the present invention comprises a system for trading currencies over a computer network. A preferred embodiment comprises: (a) a server front-end; (b) at least one database; (c) a transaction server; (d) a rate server; (e) a pricing engine; (f) an interest rate manager; (g) a trade manager; (h) a value at risk server; (i) a margin control manager; (j) a trading system monitor; and (k) a hedging engine. In another aspect, the present invention comprises methods for trading currency over a computer network. In another aspect, the present invention comprises software for currency trading over a computer network.
On December 5, 2006, the United States Patent and Trademark Office duly and legally issued United States Patent No. 7,146,336, entitled “Currency Trading System, Methods, and Software.” The ʼ336 Patent teaches, among other things:
In one aspect, the present invention comprises a system for trading currencies over a computer network. A preferred embodiment comprises: (a) a server front-end; (b) at least one database; (c) a transaction server; (d) a rate server; (e) a pricing engine; (f) an interest rate manager; (g) a trade manager; (h) a value at risk server; (i) a margin control manager; (j) a trading system monitor; and (k) a hedging engine. In another aspect, the present invention comprises methods for trading currency over a computer network. In another aspect, the present invention comprises software for currency trading over a computer network.