California Attorney General Rob Bonta said on Oct. 16 that his office reached a $500,000 settlement with Fidelity Digital Assets, National Association, the successor entity to Fidelity Digital Asset Services, over the company’s past restrictions on retail customers in California moving crypto to external wallets. Regulators said the practice may have violated California’s Commodity Law of 1990, which restricts certain speculative commodity contracts unless buyers receive actual delivery within a set period. California treated the ability to withdraw cryptocurrency as the functional equivalent of delivery. From November 2022 to April 2025, California customers were able to buy and sell crypto on Fidelity’s platform but could not send those assets directly to external wallets. Fidelity said the restriction was tied to the fact that the New York State Department of Financial Services, or NYDFS, had not yet approved the feature. That approval came in April 2025, and transfer capability was expanded to all California retail customers in June 2025.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta said on Oct. 16 that his office reached a $500,000 settlement with Fidelity Digital Assets, National Association, the successor entity to Fidelity Digital Asset Services. The settlement concerns the company’s previous practice of restricting retail customers in California from transferring cryptocurrency to external wallets.
Probe centered on limits to external wallet transfers
Regulators said the practice may have violated California’s Commodity Law of 1990. Under that law, certain speculative commodity contracts are restricted unless the buyer receives actual delivery within a specified period. California treated the ability to withdraw cryptocurrency as the functional equivalent of delivery.
Restriction remained in place until approval in April 2025
From November 2022 to April 2025, California customers could buy and sell cryptocurrency on Fidelity’s platform, but they could not send those assets directly to external wallets.
Fidelity said the restriction stemmed from the fact that the New York State Department of Financial Services, or NYDFS, had not approved the feature at the time. Approval was granted in April 2025, and transfer functionality was expanded to all California retail customers in June 2025.
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