Crypto Lawyer Khurram Dara Considers Run for New York Attorney General
The 2026 AG race could become a battleground for crypto regulation and enforcement
Crypto emerged as a defining issue in the 2024 presidential election — now it could be poised to shape New York’s 2026 Attorney General race.
Khurram Dara, a 36-year-old crypto regulatory and policy lawyer, is preparing to seek the Republican nomination for New York's highest legal post, setting up a potential challenge against Democratic incumbent Letitia James, Crypto In America has learned.
Dara, a New York State native with a resumé that includes Coinbase and venture capital powerhouse Bain Capital Crypto, left the private sector last month to begin laying the groundwork for his campaign.
Under New York's nominating process, Republican statewide candidates must either secure 25% of the vote at the party convention held in early 2026, or collect a sufficient number of petition signatures, to appear on the primary ballot.
“I plan to travel the state over the next few months to meet with local party leadership and New Yorkers directly before making a final decision on whether to run,” Dara told Crypto In America.
A Columbia Law graduate, Dara has spent much of the past decade in legal and policy roles within the crypto sector. He began his legal career at the Wall Street firm Cahill Gordon & Reindel, and later served on Coinbase’s policy team during the Securities and Exchange Commission’s 2022 investigation of the exchange — a period widely seen as part of the Biden administration’s broader regulatory crackdown on the crypto industry.
“I’ve seen the consequences of lawfare firsthand," Dara said. "Lawfare doesn’t just erode trust in government, it increases the cost of doing business and diverts resources from public safety."
His front-row seat to enforcement-happy regulators has formed the foundation of his potential Attorney General campaign.
Dara argues that so-called “lawfare” — when public officials use legal tactics for political ends — has distorted the role of the AG office, turning it into an unofficial regulator and policymaker. That’s especially risky, he argues, for emerging industries like crypto, which face a patchwork of state rules in the absence of clear federal oversight.
James, a 66-year-old progressive Democrat, has become known for launching high-profile political cases against President Donald Trump, the National Rifle Association, as well as an investigation into former Governor Andrew Cuomo. Perhaps most notably, she led the civil fraud case against Trump that resulted in a $454 million judgment earlier this year, after a judge found that he and his company had fraudulently inflated the value of his assets to obtain favorable loans and insurance deals.
Investigating and prosecuting Trump was a central pillar of James’s 2018 campaign and was widely credited with helping her win over 60% of the vote in a blue state where many voters had grown disillusioned with Trump’s first term.
James has also made crypto enforcement a hallmark of her tenure as New York Attorney General, launching actions against firms like Gemini, Galaxy Digital, Tether, and Digital Currency Group (DCG).
In 2023, her office sued Gemini, Genesis Global Capital, and DCG, alleging the trio defrauded over 230,000 investors of more than $1 billion through the Gemini Earn program. The case resulted in Gemini, run by the billionaire Winklevoss twins, agreeing to return approximately $50 million to Earn users and accepting a ban on offering crypto lending products in New York, following a broader $2 billion settlement with Genesis that ensured Earn users recovered 100% of their assets.
James has also pushed for stricter federal oversight of crypto, warning that the recently passed GENIUS Act, which establishes a federal framework for stablecoins, lacks adequate safeguards and could expose consumers to risk.
Her calls to limit stablecoin issuance to regulated banks within the U.S. reflect her broader view that digital assets pose systemic dangers to the wider financial system if left unchecked.
“No public official has done more to drive crypto companies and innovation out of New York than Letitia James," said Dan Spuller, Executive Vice President of Industry Affairs at the Blockchain Association. “Her enforcement-first approach — rooted in headlines, not sound policy — has made the state unwelcoming to responsible builders.”
A press rep for James did not return a request for comment. New York’s broader regulatory environment has also driven industry pushback. The state’s BitLicense regime, enforced by the New York Department of Financial Services, is often cited by founders as a key reason for relocating or avoiding the state entirely. Critics say James’s enforcement-first approach, combined with NYDFS’s stringent licensing requirements, has contributed to a “Bit-exodus” as crypto firms seek out jurisdictions more open to innovation and growth.
Dara says a key priority of his platform, if he decides to run, would be making New York a more business-friendly environment for crypto and tech firms.
“I think it’s crazy that New York ends up next to places like Iran and North Korea on a list of prohibited jurisdictions in companies' Terms of Service," he said.
Spuller, who advocates for comprehensive federal and state regulations for digital assets, voiced enthusiastic support for Dara's candidacy.
“Khurram Dara is the right person to lead the New York Attorney General’s office because he brings rare expertise at the intersection of crypto law, public policy, and consumer protection,” he said. "He understands how to modernize oversight without politicizing it — striking the balance New York urgently needs.”
Dara has not yet begun fundraising but is expected to draw early support from tech and crypto constituencies if he formally enters the race.
Last year, the crypto industry poured over $130 million into the 2024 elections, backing pro-crypto candidates for Congress and supporting Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
James is widely expected to seek re-election, though she has yet to formally announce. The only other declared Republican candidate so far is Michael Henry, the party’s 2022 nominee.