Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield has filed a securities enforcement action against cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, even as federal regulators have pulled back from similar actions under the Trump administration.
The lawsuit, filed in Multnomah County Circuit Court, alleges Coinbase violated Oregon Securities Law by encouraging and facilitating the sale of unregistered cryptocurrencies to Oregon residents. Rayfield highlights that the crypto exchange promotes unregistered digital assets, which are highly risky, and Oregonians have faced huge losses because of this.
Rayfied stated, “After building trust with Oregon consumers, Coinbase sold high-risk investments without them being properly vetted to protect consumers.” He added, “Oregonians lost money, and we believe Coinbase should be held accountable and take steps to protect consumers.”
On the other hand, Coinbase has strongly criticized Oregon’s lawsuit. Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal called it “obstruction for the sake of obstruction” and “a desperate scheme that does nothing to move the crypto conversation forward.”
The case highlights a growing regulatory divide as the Trump administration takes a markedly different approach to cryptocurrency oversight. The SEC has recently abandoned investigations into several crypto firms, including OpenSea, Kraken, and Uniswap.
Rayfield framed the state’s action as necessary to “fill the enforcement vacuum being left by federal regulators who are giving up under the new administration.”
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