Newsom signs California memecoin ban for public officials
California's governor has barred state officials from issuing memecoins as part of an 11-bill anti-corruption package, framing the move as a rebuke of President Trump's $TRUMP token.
Key points
- Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 2409 on Sunday, banning California public officials from issuing memecoins.
- The bill was one of 11 signed together, covering corruption, consumer protection and crypto crime.
- Other measures set rules for repaying crypto scam victims and seizing crypto from criminal networks.
- Newsom's office titled the announcement 'THE OPPOSITE OF TRUMP', citing the $TRUMP memecoin.
- Nansen data shows 988,905 buyers lost a combined $3.81 billion on $TRUMP, while Trump's disclosure lists $636 million in royalties.
California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a law banning state public officials from issuing memecoins, according to CoinDesk. The measure, AB 2409, was signed on Sunday alongside 10 other bills covering corruption, consumer protection and cryptocurrency crime. Newsom's office framed the package as a direct response to President Donald Trump and his $TRUMP token.
The ban applies to cryptocurrencies that represent a famous personality, an internet joke or a viral trend rather than a specific use case. It is unclear whether the law covers meme tokens that already exist, such as $TRUMP. The other bills in the package set rules for paying back victims of crypto scams and create a legal process for seizing crypto from transnational criminal networks.
California signs memecoin ban
Newsom's office titled the announcement 'THE OPPOSITE OF TRUMP', accusing the Trump administration of corruption and self-dealing, including through the viral $TRUMP memecoin. In the press release, Newsom said California is fighting to make the economy work for people rather than the powerful, adding that no official should profit from their office. Trump's office did not immediately respond to CoinDesk's request for comment.
Trump launched $TRUMP three days before his early 2025 inauguration. The frenzy was so intense that its price rose from under $1 to $75 within a day or two, pushing its market capitalisation to $14 billion, before it crashed just as quickly and generated huge losses for small holders. As of the article's publication, the token traded at $2.03.
The $TRUMP token fallout
Data tracked by Nansen shows 988,905 buyers lost a combined $3.81 billion. Trump's financial disclosure lists $636 million in royalties from the coin, and Trump Organization affiliates own about 80% of the supply. CoinDesk reports that Trump has made millions from memecoins, a route now closed to California politicians.
Newsom is in his second and final term as governor, which ends in January, and is widely seen as a 2028 presidential contender. The signing adds California to a growing set of jurisdictions trying to draw lines around crypto activity by public figures and to build protections for retail investors caught in token collapses.