Much-needed banking services may soon be available to more cannabis-related businesses in the U.S. than ever before as federal legislation has taken one step closer to passing a marijuana banking bill. Cannabis has been regulated either medically or for adult-use in over 30 states, but much of this billion-dollar industry has to be cash-only due
West Virginia took a major step in the fight for banking services for cannabis when the state House of Delegates passed a bill that, if adopted, would provide state protections for banks that take on cannabis-related businesses as customers. What does the bill do? The state would not be able to prohibit or penalize (or
In the U.S., cannabis businesses have had very limited access to banking and financial services due to federal prohibition, but that may soon change as a draft bipartisan bill makes its way through the process. There have been such bills put forth that failed, as recently as last year, including an attempt to tie the
Humans have a difficult time imagining large numbers, which is why it’s sometimes overwhelming for some to think about the cannabis industry. Without access to financial services in the U.S., legal cannabis brings in $10 billion and 99.9% of those transactions are in cash. Literally, billions of dollars trade hands every year, and there’s no
Michigan’s cannabis industry is blooming, and local banks are beginning to bank cannabis funds to help the industry reach new heights. The State of Michigan has been developing its cannabis regulations for over a decade, starting with legalizing medical cannabis in 2008 and continuing in 2018 by legalizing adult-use cannabis and at-home cultivation. Though acceptance
Banks and investment capital finally have an avenue into the hemp industry with a recent change to federal regulation. Shortly before Christmas, the 2018 Congressional Farm Bill was signed into law and has now already taken effect. That bill included provisions that effectively legalize the production of hemp in the U.S. by distinguishing it from
The latest push for lifting the federal prohibition of cannabis and paving the way for cannabis business banking services has failed, but the senator behind the measure isn’t backing down. U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Colorado, has spent nearly a year pushing for the passage of the STATES Act that would give federal permission to the
Who knew cash could be so expensive? The IRS recently paid a consulting company $1.7 million to help process the billions of dollars in taxes that cannabis businesses were paying … in cash. Most businesses write a check when they pay taxes, but federal prohibition continues to prevent many cannabis businesses from getting back accounts.
Billions of dollars flow through the legal cannabis industry every year, much of it cash by necessity, and financial institutions and Wall Street want in. In the U.S., the fear of regulations and reputational damage is continuing to keep many investors out of this market. But that isn’t the case everywhere. Over 30 states have