John Deaton Slams Senator Warren of Lobbying for Banks, Defends Bitcoin Billionaires

John Deaton, the Republican nominee from Massachusetts, has lashed out fresh attacks on existing Senator Elizabeth Warren over her criticism of the crypto industry and instead lobbying for the banking industry. Deaton shares statistics on how crypto is less used for illicit transactions and how the top banks, instead, have facilitated hundreds of millions of dollars in money laundering.

John Deaton Says Less Than 1% Bitcoins Used in Illicit Transactions

During his recent interview with WBUR, XRP attorney John Deaton slammed existing Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren for her take on cryptocurrencies and her constant attacks on crypto’s use for illicit purposes. His recent comments came after winning the Republican Primary last week.

Deaton emphasized that less than 1% of Bitcoin and cryptocurrency transactions are used for illicit purposes, citing data from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime. On the other hand, he showed that nearly $800 billion and $2 trillion of money laundering happens through banks every year while naming traditional banks like HSBC, JPMorgan, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo, as the primary offenders, rather than cryptocurrencies.

Deaton further accused Senator Warren of being a major advocate for big banks, noting her criticism of “crypto billionaires”.

Furthermore, the XRP lawyer reminded Warren that he’s done more to get regulatory clarity on financial assets. Deaton added that he had sued the SEC, exposing conflicts of interest and representing 75,000 individual token holders in litigation, all without charge.

He also highlighted that his oversight work as a private citizen has been more extensive than Warren’s as a member of the Senate Banking Committee.

Apart from John Deaton, crypto industry players who support Kamala Harris, like Anthony Scaramucci and Mark Cuban, have also lashed out at Elizabeth Warren calling him a hypocrite. Scaramucci also called Senator Warren and Gary Gensler as the “access of regulatory evil”.

Crypto Legislation Soon After Trump Victory?

In the current Biden administration, crypto legislation has taken a backseat and even the next Democratic Party nominee Kamala Harris seems disinterested in it. Cryptocurrencies and digital assets have no mention in recent Kamala Harris policy decisions.

On the other hand, Donald Trump has promised several crypto-friendly policies if re-elected to the White House. Thus, working with representatives like John Deaton who have a greater understanding of the legal frameworks of the crypto industry, Trump could push faster the crypto legislation thereby bringing regulatory clarity to the market.

The US SEC has terrified the crypto industry firms over the past few years with analysts predicting more crypto crackdowns in September.