Coinbase sues Oregon Gov. Kotek for public records over crypto policy shift amid charges brought against the firm

Coinbase has lodged charges against Oregon Governor Tina Kotek, accusing her office of stonewalling the release of documents related to a lawsuit the state brought against the exchange earlier this year. 

In a complaint filed in the Circuit Court of the State of Oregon for the County of Marion, Coinbase said the state "changed course" when suing the exchange as part of a "securities enforcement action" in April after previously stating that cryptocurrencies were not regulated by the state as securities. 

Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield sued Coinbase this spring claiming the company facilitated the sale of unregistered cryptocurrencies "to people in Oregon," potentially exposing them to pump-and-dump schemes and fraud. The state's charges mirror charges brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in 2023 under the Biden administration that were later dropped in the new Trump administration.

Coinbase argued in its new complaint that policy changes should go through hearings, debate, or the state's legislature, and that "this major shift in state policy occurred entirely behind closed doors."

"Oregonians deserve to know why their government is keeping them in the dark — and why they’re pursuing a case that would deprive Oregonians (and only Oregonians) from trading crypto," Coinbase's vice president litigation Ryan VanGrack said in a statement. The exchange's lawyers further accused the "plaintiffs’ lawyers from New York and Washington, D.C." of "hoping to reap millions of dollars in profit" through its "regulation-by-ambush."

Oregon is the only state to pursue charges against Coinbase. At the time that state's complaint was filed, Rayfield argued that “Oregonians lost money," adding that "Coinbase should be held accountable and take steps to protect consumers.”

Kotek's office did not respond to a request for comment. 

At the federal level, lawmakers are closing in on bills to regulate stablecoins and the crypto industry at large. Next week the U.S. House of Representatives will consider both a market structure law, called Clarity, and a stablecoin bill, called GENIUS, which is expected to head to President Trump's desk by the end of the month.