NY AG Sues Coinbase, Gemini for Illegal Gambling on Prediction Markets

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New York AG Sues Coinbase and Gemini Over Illegal Prediction Market Gambling Claims

New York Attorney General Letitia James is suing cryptocurrency platforms Coinbase and Gemini, claiming their prediction markets violate state gambling laws, Reuters reports.

Key Takeaways:

  • Reuters reported that New York AG Letitia James sued Coinbase and Gemini on April 21 for operating unlicensed prediction markets.
  • Both platforms allowed users aged 18 to 20 to wager, violating New York’s 21-and-older sports betting law.
  • James seeks triple civil fines, customer restitution, and a ban on college campus marketing by both firms.

New York Attorney General Targets Coinbase and Gemini in Prediction Market Crackdown

Reuters New York contributor, Jonathan Stempel, reported that Letitia James filed the complaints in Manhattan state court, accusing both crypto exchanges of running markets where users trade on the outcomes of sports events and elections without holding New York State Gaming Commission licenses. Bloomberg also reported on the legal action.

The filings mark the first major state-level enforcement action targeting prediction markets offered by major cryptocurrency platforms. James argued the platforms meet New York’s legal definition of gambling because outcomes are determined by chance or factors outside users’ control. Her office stressed that the definition applies regardless of how the companies characterize their products.

The complaints claim both companies let people aged 18 to 20 place bets. However, New York state law requires bettors to be at least 21 years old.

James stated that regardless of how it’s presented, gambling remains gambling and is therefore subject to state laws and constitutional rules, according to a Reuters report on Tuesday.

The attorney general is trying to get back money Coinbase and Gemini earned illegally, as well as impose fines three times that amount and provide compensation to customers who were harmed. She’s also asking the court to prevent these companies from letting people under 21 place bets and to stop them from advertising on college campuses.

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2026-04-21 20:27