The Select Sector SPDR Trust sued Invesco on Friday, alleging trademark infringement, Bloomberg reports. The complaint centers around the ticker symbols of nine recently launched Invesco PowerShares exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

The PowerShares S&P SmallCap Sector Portfolios, which launched in April, use the same XL ticker symbols that SPDR has been using for more than a decade, according to the complaint.

The Bloomberg article quoted SPDR attorney John Fraser as stating in the complaint that Invesco used the symbols "with the intent to obtain free publicity from the trust's efforts and immediate market recognition."

Reached by phone on Friday afternoon, Invesco spokesperson Ivy McLemore said the company's policy is not to comment on litigation.

State Street Global Advisors, investment adviser of the Select Sector SPDR Trust, is not involved with the filing of the suit. The Select Sector SPDR Trust is a separate legal entity.

"The decision to commence this lawsuit was made by the board of Trustees, and as such, it would be inappropriate for us to comment on the actions that the Trustees," according to an SSgA representative.  

Correction: A previous version of the headline incorrectly implied that SSgA was one of the plaintiffs. SSgA is the investment advisor to the Select Sector SPDR trust.

Edited by: Armie Margaret Lee


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