Press Releases
09/14/2026
Attorney General Tong Calls on Congress to Preserve States’ Ability to Protect Americans from Cryptocurrency Scams
The Clarity Act Would Jeopardize State Attorneys General’s Ability to Protect Investors from Scams and Frauds
(Hartford, CT) -- Attorney General William Tong today joined a bipartisan coalition of 16 other attorneys general in opposing the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act (Clarity Act). In a letter sent to Senators Tim Scott and Elizabeth Warren, Chair and Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, Attorney General Tong and the coalition warn that the Clarity Act would jeopardize their ability to protect investors from rampant digital cryptocurrency fraud and scams. The attorneys general caution that as written, the Clarity Act would prevent states from serving as the first line of defense against the escalating epidemic of cryptocurrency fraud.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) reported $11.4 billion in losses from complaints involving cryptocurrencies in 2025, an increase of 22% from 2024, with an average reported loss of $62,604. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has reported $1.78 billion in losses from complaints involving cryptocurrencies in 2025, a 25.6 percent increase from 2024.
“No one trusts the Trump Administration to protect us from crypto scams—not when Trump himself and his own family are grifting off this same gravy train. Americans are losing billions of dollars to crypto scams. Congress needs to keep state, federal, civil and criminal law enforcement at full strength to stop these scams,” said Attorney General Tong.
The financial impact of crypto scams on victims can be devastating. In its present form, the Clarity Act would muddy the waters, making it harder for the attorneys general nationwide to continue efforts to crack down on cryptocurrency scams and hold platforms that violate the law accountable. The Clarity Act would also allow the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to preempt state registration authorities. This unprecedented grant of authority would not only apply to digital assets but would also broadly grant unilateral discretion to the SEC to reset the scope of federal preemption, potentially upending the state securities regulatory regime. The attorneys general assert that Congress should not cede such significant power to the SEC.
State enforcement powers have been a critical weapon in fighting the crypto fraud epidemic. Since 2017, states have brought over 330 anti-fraud enforcement actions against scammers in the crypto ecosystem, shutting down fraudulent websites and schemes, securing justice for victims, and prioritizing cases where victims had no federal or private recourse.
Maintaining state oversight of the cryptocurrency industry is critical to protecting consumers and investors. In their letter, the attorneys general advocate for legislation that would:
• Preserve states’ enforcement role for both tokenized and non-tokenized securities;
• Preserve cooperation between the federal government and the states;
• Codify states’ role as regulators of cryptocurrencies and preserve their registration regimes that require crypto platforms to certify with states; and
• Clarify ambiguous language that could otherwise embolden bad actors and lead to legal battles over enforcement.
Joining Attorney General Tong in sending the letter to Congress are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Delaware, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Nevada, Ohio, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin and the District of Columbia.
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Media Contact:
Elizabeth Benton
elizabeth.benton@ct.gov
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