Nationwide files trademark suit against mortgage lender

One of the nation's largest insurers is suing a Long Island-based lender for copyright infringement, suggesting the shop has profited off its similar brand. 

Nationwide filed the lawsuit against Nationwide Mortgage Bankers last week in an Ohio federal court, claiming that the lender's misuse has cost the industry giant "unquantifiable" damages. The insurer, itself a former banking and mortgage player, is also seeking $100,000 in damages for each instance of the lender cybersquating similar-sounding web domains. 

According to Nationwide, customers have complained about the lender trying to pass itself off as the insurer. That includes alleged lender outreach to a customer soliciting a refinance to maintain insurance coverage, or echoing the insurer's "Nationwide is on your side" slogan in an email. The insurer also takes issue with the lender's branding highlighting the "Nationwide" name, and its similar, blue color scheme. 

Nationwide Mortgage Bankers today markets itself as NMB, or NMBNow, on its website, although the insurance giant contends the lender uses the contested branding in other areas. The sides have discussed the trademark dispute and previously failed to reach a settlement agreement, the complaint alleges. 

A summons has not yet been issued for NMB. In a statement Tuesday afternoon, spokesperson Tom Butler said the company has not had an opportunity to fully review the claims asserted. 

"We were surprised by the filing of this lawsuit, particularly given that we have worked with Nationwide Mutual for several years now in an effort to avoid any potential confusion, and our company will continue to do so, responsibly and professionally," said Butler. 

Neither attorneys nor spokespersons for Nationwide responded to requests for comment Tuesday. 

Copyright dispute decade in the making

Nationwide, founded in 1926, first filed for its Nationwide patent in 1967. The company offers numerous financial services, although it exited retail banking in 2018. It reported over $73 billion in sales last year, and regularly runs national advertising campaigns. 

NMB was founded in 2011 and today is a sizable lender, having originated over $1.5 billion in loan volume in 2024, according to publicly available Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data. The company also reports 231 sponsored originators and 32 active branches in Nationwide Multistate Licensing System records. 

The new lawsuit describes NMB's failed trademark application process beginning in 2011, as the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office found a likelihood of confusion with the larger insurer. The lender registered its domain, nationwidemortgagebankers.com, in November 2012, three months after the federal office's second rejection of its application. 

"Defendant's use of the Nationwide Mortgage Bankers mark uses the entirety of Nationwide's famous mark, while appending at the end the non-distinctive phrase 'mortgage bankers,'" wrote attorneys for the insurer. 

The plaintiff firm argues that despite NMB's new branding, it still redirects web traffic from its original domain to its new site, further profiting off the stolen identity. Nationwide is asking the court for a permanent injunction regarding NMB's branding, and for the lender to cease hosting its domains. 

Mortgage companies have infrequently filed trademark disputes against one another, with several cases in recent years quietly dismissed by the parties. A yearslong dispute between the "We Buy Ugly Houses" firm and Warners Bros. Discovery, regarding its HGTV's "Ugliest House in America" show, remains pending following a bench trial last year.