286
Q& A
Spiro Sertsis: CIM
Scott Boyes: MPXEF
OTC: MPXEF;
CSE: MPX
HVST)
HVST)
P
MPXEF continued: Also, both the medical and recreational cannabis markets have significant growth potential; not just for the companies that operate in the industry, but also for the states and communities in which they operate as well, creating jobs and economic growth. Arcview has projected that by 2021 our industry will have created over 400 thousand jobs, produced over $4 billion in tax receipts to the respective states and generated an overall economic impact of over $400 billion. We just don’t see Congress, or state governments letting anyone screw with that.
Given the strong positive economic impact of the cannabis industry, we believe that individual states will work towards continuing to implement their own regulations based on voter outcomes and legislative initiatives like we have recently seen in Vermont and New Jersey, while, at the same time, adhering to best practice standards.
Of course, we are still protected by the Rohrabacher-Blumhauer Amendment which prohibits the Justice Department from using any funds to go after cannabis enterprises operating in compliance with state regulations.
CIM: We hear a lot about the Nevada and to a lesser extent Arizona markets in the press, but less so about two other U.S. markets you’re in: Massachusetts and Maryland. What can you tell our readers about these two markets and why choose them over the more established markets in Oregon and Washington, or even the newly legal large California market?
MPXEF: Both Massachusetts and Maryland present strong opportunities for us.
The Massachusetts market is expecting to grow to 1.2 billion by 2020 part of that driven by tourism from neighboring states. Voters there legalized recreational use in 2016, but it is a tightly regulated market with a limited number of competitors.