Plaid denies misleading users after TD lawsuit

Plaid Inc. denies it has used TD Bank’s logo to dupe customers into handing over personal information that the U.S.-based data company could monetize and says it’s disappointed a TD subsidiary has filed a lawsuit against it.

The San Francisco-based company said in a statement to The Canadian Press on Friday that Plaid’s role in transactions is made clear to consumers and it was caught off guard when TD’s U.S. subsidiary filed a lawsuit.

“We were surprised by TD Bank’s decision to file suit in the midst of our good-faith discussions, which are still ongoing,” said Plaid, whose software helps apps including Venmo, Coinbase, Square and Stripe access bank and credit card info. “We have been working with TD for quite some time, and are disappointed that they resorted to litigation and false allegations. Plaid is publicly known for never selling or renting consumers’ personal information.”

The statement stems from a civil suit TD filed in a New Jersey court on Wednesday that accuses Plaid of creating a user interface for financial services applications that infringes on the bank’s trademarks, logos and green colour scheme. The bank said in the court filings that the interface tricks consumers into believing they are entering personal information into TD Bank’s trusted platform and that Plaid then monetizes that data. The claims made in the filings have not been tested in court.

TD Bank did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Friday, but its U.S. subsidiary president Greg Braca previously said in a statement the bank is pursuing the lawsuit because of its dedication to transparency and privacy.