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Banking access is certainly a key step in the legitimization of an industry and will make it more difficult for the criminal element to use such businesses for money laundering purposes – when everything is cash … but at some point, full banking rights affords a recognition of the industry as being “legal” (and I use that word not in the strictest sense obviously) … so how long before full tax treatment rights are extended … that is to say, do you think it will come soon through legislation or possibly through court challenges …?
Timing wise, I don’t know; but I will say that having studied cannabis for the past decade, we always thought we we’re stopped out against the science—but the reality is we’re likely stopped out through the court system too. The Supreme Court recently ruled that online gambling was a State right and that’s widely seen as a parallel, if not precedent, regarding cannabis.
With every Democratic presidential hopeful running on cannabis reform, I’m not sure it gets that far. It wouldn’t shock us to see GOP or POTUS make this issue disappear before November 2020 arrives, which would seemingly line up with a UN decision on rescheduling (already recommended by the WHO) by March 2020.
Many people believe the US industry is years behind and may never catch up. I could not disagree more and I remind my fellow Canadians that when fully legal south of the 48, our sought after businesses become easy M&A target. Furthermore, successful businesses in those states with thousands of competitors may be for more efficient and effective from seed to sale than their Canadian counterparts. The industry, in some individual States, is far ahead of our own industry here in Canada in many aspects (edibles, consumer choices, branding, etc). What are your thoughts?