Qudos Bank escalates legal battle with Infosys
Qudos Bank and Infosys in legal dispute
Australia-based Qudos Bank is pursuing legal action against Infosys relating to alleged copyright infringement, breach of contract and misuse of confidential information by the Indian tech giant. Martin Whybrow reports.
The allegations are centred on software written by Infosys for another Australian client, Australian Military Bank (AMB). Qudos Bank is seeking documents from Infosys related to the user experience and user interface (UX/UI) of the mobile and online banking solution that the supplier built for AMB.
Infosys was initially engaged by Qudos Bank (Qantas Credit Union, as was) in 2015. The project spanned core banking (Infosys’ Finacle), customer relationship management, online banking, mobile application and other systems. Infosys subsequently started work on the project at AMB, with this bank’s mobile and online banking solution launched in February 2018.
Qudos Bank chairman, Andrew Leithhead, in a statement, said: “During the period Infosys was working on the Qudos Bank contract we became aware of striking similarities between the software developed for our project and the AMB project. This made us very concerned that our intellectual property may have been misused and our confidence violated.”
The court has asked Infosys to produce documents to support its claim that it has not breached the terms of its agreement with Qudos.
Qudos Bank commenced preliminary discovery proceedings against Infosys in November 2018. Leithhead said: “Following Qudos Bank’s Federal Court application, Infosys produced some documents and computer code, but resisted producing other documents we believe are important in us making a decision on whether to commence further legal action against Infosys.
“Earlier this week, the Federal Court found that Qudos Bank had reasonable grounds to believe that its rights had been violated and ordered Infosys to provide the additional documentation. The Board and Management of Qudos Bank view this matter very seriously, and are committed to protecting Qudos Bank’s intellectual property against any potential misuse.”
Infosys has responded with its own statement: “Infosys adheres to well-established processes in delivering services and has successfully designed and deployed many business-critical banking solutions globally including Australia. The company denies any allegations of wrongdoing and will vigorously defend itself in any litigation. The company will not disclose any information pertaining to the Qudos contract in adherence to our confidentiality.”
Qudos Bank has 95,000+ members and offers a full range of retail banking products including home and investment loans, credit cards, personal loans, deposit accounts, superannuation, financial planning and a range of Qantas Points Banking products. Branches and ATMs are located in states across Australia.
