Oregon’s Attorney General slammed Coinbase with a bombshell lawsuit, branding XRP and over 30 other digital tokens as unregistered securities under state law. The April 18, 2025 filing marks a dramatic shift from federal to state-level crypto enforcement, with Oregon explicitly citing the Trump administration’s regulatory gaps as motivation.
The hit list reads like a who’s who of crypto: XRP, Uniswap, Aave, Flow, Chainlink, Maker, Cardano, Algorand, Solana – and that’s just scratching the surface. Oregon claims these tokens were offered as “investment contracts” through both Coinbase’s main platform and Prime service. Talk about throwing the kitchen sink at crypto. The market shows 24-hour trading volume of $4.76 billion for XRP alone.
Oregon’s ambitious crackdown targets major crypto players, labeling tokens from XRP to Solana as investment contracts on Coinbase’s platforms.
Coinbase isn’t taking this lying down. The exchange’s legal team blasted the lawsuit as “copycat” litigation, especially since the SEC dropped its federal case against them just two months earlier. Similar to how Wolters Kluwer provides legal compliance solutions, Coinbase has assembled a robust legal defense team to navigate regulatory challenges. In what feels like a middle finger to regulators, Coinbase promptly added XRP futures to its derivatives platform after the complaint dropped.
The timing couldn’t be more awkward for the crypto industry. With Congress still fumbling around with federal regulations, states are now jumping into the fray. Oregon’s Department of Justice basically said, “If the feds won’t do it, we will.” The uncertain regulatory environment has sparked concerns about market sentiment affecting cryptocurrency valuations across the board.
The lawsuit won’t set binding precedent for other states, but it’s already causing headaches for exchanges trying to figure out what they can and can’t list. Legal experts are rolling their eyes at the mounting confusion. The suit doesn’t even mention Ripple’s previous SEC settlement over XRP – convenient oversight or strategic move?
Meanwhile, the crypto community is watching this regulatory ping-pong match with a mix of frustration and dark humor.
Bottom line: This lawsuit is yet another chapter in the ongoing crypto regulatory saga. While Oregon flexes its regulatory muscles, the industry braces for what could be a state-by-state legal nightmare. Grab your popcorn – this show’s far from over.
