U.S. lawmakers have criticized Trump's Meme coin as a fraud, accusing Musk and the DOGE team of weakening consumer protections

On February 16th, during a hearing of the US House Financial Services Committee, Rep. Ayanna Pressley expressed strong concern about the increasing prevalence of cryptocurrency scams and urged stronger consumer protections. She emphasized that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) played an important role in fighting fraud, but was disbanded under the influence of Trump and Musk, particularly through actions taken by the Department of Government Effectiveness (DOGE).
Pressley pointed out that there are real-life cases of individuals losing their savings to cryptocurrency scams, highlighting the urgent need for government intervention. Without CFPB safeguards, consumers are vulnerable to a growing number of cryptocurrency scam schemes.
Ms Pressley also criticised Mr. Trump's launch of Meme as a scam for allowing ordinary investors to suffer losses. She contrasted Mr. Trump's actions with the CFPB's mission to protect consumers and called for the institution to be reopened: "We need to reopen this important institution to do its necessary work."