- Oregon’s lawsuit accuses Coinbase of offering unregistered securities to residents.
- Paul Grewal criticizes Oregon for continuing the SEC’s abandoned lawsuit.
- The case raises concerns about the lack of clear national crypto regulations.
Just as Coinbase secured a major win against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), with the latter dropping the lawsuit in February 2025, Oregon’s Attorney General, Dan Rayfield, stepped in, accusing the firm of enabling and promoting the sale of unregistered securities to state residents.
Filed in Multnomah County Circuit Court, the case claimed that Coinbase violated Oregon’s Securities Law by offering unregistered digital assets, which are seen as highly risky. Rayfield argued that Oregonians have faced substantial financial losses as a result of the exchange’s actions.
A Copycat Lawsuit of the SEC’s Abandoned Case
Slamming the lawsuit as a ‘copycat case’, Coinbase’s Chief Legal Officer, Paul Grewal, stated that the case mirrors the same legal theory as the SEC case. In his X post, he pointed out that the case is being rekindled from the same point that the SEC had left. Criticizing the move, Grewal argued that focus should be given to innovating the development of the nation rather than recycling outdated regulatory efforts.
State-Level Pushback Amid Federal Shift
With this legal development, Oregon’s lawsuit reflects a growing trend of state-level pushback against the cryptocurrency industry, even after several federal agencies have backed off. Despite several states and even the SEC dropping their case against Coinbase, Oregon’s decision marks a shift in the opposite direction.
Last month, Vermont became the first to withdraw its case on March 13, 2025, followed by South Carolina two weeks later, and finally, Kentucky’s Department of Financial Institutions closed the case on March 26, 2025.
Raising concerns about fragmented crypto regulations in the U.S., the state regulators felt the pushback. Federal regulators had a strong tendency to adopt a more uniform approach with the SEC’s new task force, however, a state-level legal conflict, in Oregon became a complicating factor, preventing nationwide clarity on digital asset policy.
Related: Helium Wins Big: SEC Drops Securities Case Against Nova Labs
Bipartisan Support for Federal Legislation
Despite state-level actions, Grewal and Coinbase emphasize the need for clear federal legislation for cryptocurrencies. In his blog post, Grewal highlighted that the bipartisan momentum is building in Congress for comprehensive laws to regulate digital assets.
According to him, federal rules could provide the stability needed for U.S. crypto businesses to thrive and protect them from politically motivated state enforcement actions. Grewal criticized Oregon’s actions as a distraction from the urgent need for federal regulations.
On the whole, the case highlights the tangled web between state and federal regulators in the fast-evolving U.S. cryptocurrency terrain. State-level litigation proceedings are underway, while ongoing debates concerning national crypto policies deepen, throwing the crypto industry into the confusion of navigating a fraught regulatory future.
