Pro XRP Lawyer John Deaton Calls for Gary Gensler’s Resignation

John Deaton, a pro-XRP lawyer, has called for the resignation of SEC Chairman Gary Gensler. This demand comes amid legal squabbles and criticisms of the SEC’s approach to cryptocurrencies’ regulation and enforcement.

John Deaton Advocates for SEC Leadership Change

Following a ruling where the SEC was penalized $1. 75 million for misleading conduct in the Debt Box case, Pro XRP Lawyer John Deaton has begun to rally for the resignation of SEC Chairman Gary Gensler. Moreover, because of the SEC’s overreach, Deaton has taken part in amicus curiae in major cases against firms like Ripple, LBRY, and Coinbase.

He argues that the SEC, under the leadership of Gensler, has used strategies that are financially damaging to the companies that it investigates, especially criticizing how the agency handled the LBRY case.

Deaton also mentioned that SEC representatives publicly declared their goal to bring LBRY to its knees via legal fees and this revelation has sparked outrage among the members of the crypto community.

I am very proud of the fact that I was one of the very first people to battle @GaryGensler’s @SECGov, serving as amici curiae in the @Ripple, @LBRYcom and @coinbase cases. I sued the SEC on January 1, 2021 and for more than three years I argued lawyers at the SEC were… https://t.co/ssOgWzgGuK

— John E Deaton (@JohnEDeaton1) May 28, 2024

Furthermore, John Deaton has pointed out that the SEC has been similarly harassing Ripple executives Brad Garlinghouse and Chris Larsen, which he stated shows the bad faith of the SEC under the current leadership. This aggressive regulatory posture has led Deaton and others to demand an accounting and change within the agency.

Why Call for a SEC Chair Change?

The debate is mainly centered on how the SEC approaches and implements the securities laws to the digital asset market. The SEC has brought several enforcement actions to claim that specific digital assets are securities and thus are regulated by the commission. This approach has resulted in litigations with consequences to the legal framework governing the crypto markets.

Besides the Debt Box case, the actions by the SEC in its confrontation with other crypto organizations have not been friendly. For instance, Ripple Labs has been involved in a legal battle over the classification of its XRP token as a security. Critics, including Deaton, have accused the SEC of being unpredictable and overbearing in its regulation of the sector, which they have claimed could harm the development of the emerging industry of digital assets.

John Deaton’s frustration is evident in his calls for accountability at the highest levels of the SEC, urging figures like Senator Elizabeth Warren and Senator Sherrod Brown to take action.

During this time, Chris Giancarlo, the former Chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), has been recommended by Deaton for SEC chair to create a more innovation-oriented regulatory system. This change can be traced back to Giancarlo’s period at the CFTC as he was more amenable to cryptocurrency advancements than Gensler is today at the SEC.

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