Curaleaf
Canadian Stock Exchange-listed Curaleaf, the largest grower and distributor of cannabis in the world, is reportedly exploring a secondary listing in Germany.
According to the Financial Times, the recent passage of Germany’s CanG act has encouraged the cannabis giant to increase its presence in the European market via a listing on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.
Juan Martinez, the head of Curaleaf International, told the publication: “We’re very much interested in a European listing… the only listing in Europe that is possible is a very limited listing in the second board of Frankfurt.”
“We are actively exploring avenues to bolster shareholder value, which includes discussions with various exchanges, including those in Germany and London.”
Should the company make good on these plans, it would join Cantourage which launched an IPO on the FSE in November 2022, alongside Germany’s SynBiotic and Denmark’s Stenocare.
Last month, Business of Cannabis reported that Curaleaf had acquired Canadian cannabis company Northern Green Canada (NGC), one of the few producers in the country to hold an EU-GMP licence.
The move put Curaleaf in a far stronger position to export its products into Europe, particularly Germany’s medical cannabis market.
At the time, Boris Jordan, executive chairman of Curaleaf, said: “The opportunity in Germany alone cannot be understated, and we continue to prepare strategically for that moment and beyond.”
With this supply route now in place, Curaleaf says it ‘has the benefit of having a playbook because we’ve done this before in the US.”
Mr Martinez continued: “We understand how markets develop from a very limited medical program eventually to a wider medical program and then eventually to a recreational cannabis program.”
Voyager Life – Northern Leaf
Aquis Stock Exchange-listed Voyager Life has announced that its proposed merger with medical cannabis cultivation business Northern Leaf is now dead in the water, seeing its stock price dive by over 50%.
Last month, Business of Cannabis reported that the companies had put forward a proposal for a merger.
The proposed deal would have valued the newly combined entity at £5m based on Voyager’s share price at the time, assuming a ‘deferred consideration’ is paid in full.
It was also considered a ‘rescue of a company that is in serious financial difficulty’, and was contingent on Voyager being able to raise enough working capital via a fundraise.
This appears to have been the crux of the issue. In a statement to investors published on April 08, Voyager explained that: “The principal reason for the termination was that the fundraising to support the proposed merger could not be completed in line with Northern Leaf’s requirements for financing its business plan.”
After providing Voyager with its financial forecasts in December 2023, it became clear that Northern Leaf was ‘severely cash constrained’, and was ‘likely to need financial support by April 2024’ to continue operating.
Voyager’s directors reportedly determined that the ‘near term funding requirements’ of around £1m were worth pursuing, given the ‘valuable opportunity’ presented by the merger and the £33m that has been invested in Northern Leaf’s facility so far.
Despite the initial fundraising being ‘well received’, it soon became clear that ‘the fundraising was unlikely to complete within the targeted timeframe’, leaving ‘no option’ but to terminate the proposed merger.
Nick Tulloch, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Voyager, said: “Needless to say, it is hugely disappointing to bring our proposed merger with Northern Leaf to an end. As we look back over the past few months, a transaction well received by the industry and investors has been prevented by circumstances outside of our control.”
Northern Leaf said in an update to creditors that it now has ‘no choice by to pursue alternative options’ as the fundraising ‘remained at less than half the required amount of £2m necessary to complete the proposed merger’.
It is understood that the company has since signed a contract with an unnamed entity to sell its existing inventory for €286,350, with further finished product expected to be sold for €78,000.
According to the Jersey Post, the company is now negotiating the additional funding required to meet planned payments to key suppliers and creditors in April, and will continue as a ‘going concern’ through August 2024, after which the ‘full terms of the acquisition of Northern Leaf can be negotiated’.
