Newsom signs California ban on public officials issuing memecoins
California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed Assembly Bill 2409, barring state officials from launching memecoins and restricting listings that use an official's likeness, while attacking President Trump's crypto ventures.
Key points
- Newsom signed Assembly Bill 2409 on Sunday, prohibiting California public officials from launching memecoins.
- The law also restricts companies from listing coins that use an official's likeness or image.
- Newsom said nearly one million investors lost more than $3 billion on Trump's memecoin, while the president made about $636 million.
- He also signed Senate Bill 1208 on digital asset money laundering and restitution rules for crypto scam victims.
- The Senate blocked the Digital Asset Clarity Act 49-50 on Sept. 15 after Democrats demanded stronger ethics limits.
California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed legislation barring the state's public officials from issuing memecoins, a move his office framed as a direct contrast to President Donald Trump's memecoin project. Newsom signed Assembly Bill 2409 on Sunday, according to The Block, and the law also restricts companies from listing coins that use an official's likeness or image.
In a statement, Newsom attacked Trump by name, saying no official should profit from their office and that California is putting stronger protections in place. He claimed that nearly one million investors lost more than $3 billion on Trump's memecoin while the president made about $636 million. Trump launched his own memecoin in 2025 to much anticipation, but it crashed soon after a brief spike following the launch.
The US president's crypto businesses became a central obstacle to the Digital Asset Clarity Act. Trump denied any conflict of interest, but Democrats pointed to over $1.4 billion in crypto-related income in 2025, which came from the TRUMP memecoin and World Liberty Financial. Democrats refused to advance the Clarity Act without stronger ethics limits on officials who profit from digital asset matters they regulate. Trump agreed to additional ethics limits ahead of the September vote, but the Senate blocked the bill 49-50 on Sept. 15.
Memecoin ban signed
Newsom also signed several other pieces of legislation focused on crypto crime and consumer protection. Senate Bill 1208 addresses money laundering involving digital assets and is intended to set clearer rules for restitution when investors lose money in crypto scams. Another bill aims to protect crypto users in California by establishing a clear legal framework for seizing crypto assets from transnational criminal networks.
The new laws expand on earlier efforts by Newsom since 2019, such as requiring public officials to disclose crypto holdings that could create conflicts of interest. The package places California among states moving on digital asset rules while federal legislation remains stalled in the Senate.
The memecoin ban targets a specific conflict: officials promoting tokens tied to their own public profile. By extending the restriction to listings that use an official's likeness, the law reaches exchanges and issuers as well as officeholders. The Block reports that Newsom used the signing to draw a contrast with Trump, whose crypto income and token launch have fuelled ethics complaints in Washington.
Clarity Act blocked
For crypto firms operating in California, the restitution and seizure provisions add compliance duties around scams and illicit flows. The measures arrive as the Clarity Act's failure leaves market structure questions unresolved at the federal level, giving state-level rules greater weight for exchanges and token issuers active in the largest US state economy.