So what has been developed openly for the last 10+ years for everybody's benefit... these guys just come along, copy much of it and make a few obvious changes here and there and patent it?

Next thing they will be suing the rest of the crypto community for anything that even remotely resembles what they are claiming to do.

Just like the self fulfilling banking system, Intellectual Property system has also become just another tool used to control and keep in check any challenge to the powers that be... to stifle innovation and embolden big corporates to crush small competitors.