Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by our writers are their own and do not represent the views of U.Today. The financial and market information provided on U.Today is intended for informational purposes only. U.Today is not liable for any financial losses incurred while trading cryptocurrencies. Conduct your own research by contacting financial experts before making any investment decisions. We believe that all content is accurate as of the date of publication, but certain offers mentioned may no longer be available.
There are a number of complicated dynamics in any securities lawsuit such as the one levied against the duo of Binance and Coinbase exchanges by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), especially for platform users. In a bid to gain the appropriate standing to be the mouthpiece of these users, XRP holders' lawyer John Deaton has issued a form to represent these users, which he recently revealed has crossed the 3,890 mark.
3,895 customers have signed up. If you don’t want the SEC speaking for you and and you want them to stop providing you with their unique form of protection, feel free to join. https://t.co/Udv2swSdjz
— John E Deaton (@JohnEDeaton1) July 24, 2023
Based on his amicus representation of XRP holders, Deaton occupies an important position in the yet-to-be-concluded lawsuit between Ripple Labs and the SEC. Through his role, the more than 75,000 XRP holders he represents were able to lend their voice to the argument that they did not invest in XRP as an investment contract or security.
While the recent XRP ruling shows that the efforts put into the litigation were not a waste, should the case have turned out in the SEC's favor, Deaton would have been able to help the XRP holders he represented get a cut of the fines that Ripple Labs would have paid.
Safeguarding interests of users
While the SEC has often claimed that its lawsuits against the top firms in the digital currency ecosystem were to protect retail investors, it is evident that more trust is placed on Deaton as showcased by the more than 3,900 already signed up for him to represent them.
The markets regulator said that both Coinbase and Binance supported the trading of unregistered securities, including top tokens like Cardano (ADA), Solana (SOL) and Filecoin (FIL), to mention a few. Though the XRP ruling has created a precedent for the industry, holders of the coins designated by the SEC may still need to guard themselves against any unforeseen eventualities, and Deaton is offering himself to help as much as possible.