New Jersey rescinded its 2023 Coinbase staking order, dropping a $5M fine and ban; four states still block staking.
The state securities regulator in New Jersey has thrown out the 2023 staking enforcement order against Coinbase, eliminating both a $5 million fine and the restriction that kept state residents from putting fresh funds into the exchange's staking program.
The move, dated October 30, was made without prejudice, so the state can still open a new case. It also arrives as Coinbase's staking-related revenue fell 54% last quarter, drawing New Jersey stakers and Coinbase (COIN) shareholders into the story.
Staking involves committing tokens such as Ethereum (ETH) or Solana (SOL) to support blockchain operations and earning freshly issued tokens in return. Coinbase handles that process on behalf of clients and takes a portion of the rewards.
New Jersey's Bureau of Securities in June 2023 called the product an unregistered security.
The state Attorney General's office counted 145,270 New Jersey residents as users at that point. Coinbase suspended staking offerings in four states within weeks.
Acting Bureau Chief Keith A. Alt signed the latest order, which offers no determination on whether staking ran afoul of state law.
According to Molly Abraham, Coinbase's chief legal officer, New Jersey account holders lost out on millions of dollars in rewards during the three-year period.
Another one.
â Molly Abraham (@mollyisonchain) November 2, 2026
New Jersey has formally dropped its staking lawsuit against Coinbase and lifted its cease-and-desist order, paving the way for our NJ users to resume staking after missing millions of dollars in rewards over the past 3+ years.
Defending our usersâ access to secure,âŠ
In April 2025, Coinbase placed the total of missed rewards across states at $90 million.
Coinbase pulled in $85.7 million from blockchain rewards, largely staking, during Q3, compared with $184.6 million in the same period a year earlier, according to its quarterly filing.
The company attributed $111.8 million of the decline to weaker prices for Solana and Ethereum. A further $18.9 million was shaved off by reduced reward rates.
It was in that October 29 filing that Coinbase first revealed New Jersey's intention to rescind the order. The exchange additionally cautioned that adverse outcomes in the still-pending state cases could do material damage to its operations.
The federal side moved first. In February 2025, the SEC consented to end its own legal action against Coinbase.
A May 2025 statement from SEC staff concluded that protocol staking generally falls outside securities rules. The statement is non-binding, and Commissioner Caroline Crenshaw took the opposite view.
The filing indicates that Alabama, Illinois, Kentucky, South Carolina, and Vermont all withdrew their cases during 2025.
California, Maryland, and Wisconsin continue to have pacts in place that block new staking, while Washington's case is still unresolved.
Abraham mentioned each of those four jurisdictions in her social media post.
âWisconsin, Maryland, California, and Washington are next.â
At this stage, federal regulators have distanced themselves from staking enforcement, but four states are still keeping the matter unresolved. Even in New Jersey, the rescission order still leaves the bureau free to pursue future enforcement steps against Coinbase.
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Disclaimer: this article comes from third-party media and is provided for reference only. It does not constitute investment advice. Crypto and other financial products carry significant price volatility risk, so please make your own decisions carefully.
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