Illinois is set to withdraw its staking lawsuit against Coinbase, following the lead of three other U.S. states that have recently dropped their legal action against the exchange.
A spokesperson for Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias informed CoinDesk on Thursday that the office plans to dismiss the Coinbase lawsuit. The spokesperson did not provide a timeline for when this may happen.
In 2023, Illinois was among 10 U.S. states that filed charges against Coinbase for allegedly violating state securities laws with its staking program. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) also accused Coinbase of breaching federal securities laws in relation to its staking product, but the SEC withdrew its lawsuit in February. Following the SEC’s move, state securities regulators in Kentucky, Vermont, and South Carolina have also dropped their cases against the exchange.
States that still have ongoing staking-related lawsuits against Coinbase include Alabama, California, Maryland, New Jersey, Washington, and Wisconsin. Spokespeople for California, Maryland, and Wisconsin declined to comment on the status of the litigation.
A representative for the New Jersey Bureau of Securities stated that the “Coinbase matter is still open,” while Bill Beatty, securities administrator for the Washington Department of Financial Institutions, mentioned that the state’s “case with Coinbase is still ongoing.” The Alabama Securities Commission did not respond to CoinDesk’s request for comment.
