Cannabis at an Inflexion Point: Why Capital Is Missing the Opportunity

For much of the past five years, the cannabis industry has been defined by disappointment. Public equities are down approximately 90% from their peak, capital has largely retreated, and investor sentiment remains overwhelmingly negative.

Yet beneath the surface, a different reality is emerging.

The global cannabis market continues to expand, driven by steady legalisation in the United States and growing international adoption. Revenue growth persists. Consumer demand remains intact. And perhaps most importantly, a major regulatory shift is now underway, with the US government making a pronounced statement that the cannabis plant represents opportunities for medicinal healing. It is this recognition that will fundamentally reshape the industry’s economics.

This disconnect between improving fundamentals and deeply negative sentiment creates a familiar setup for contrarian investors.

A Capital-Constrained Growth Industry

One of the most striking features of today’s cannabis market is the absence of equity capital.

Recent data from Viridian Capital Advisors suggests that approximately 95% of financings in the sector are now structured as debt, often expensive and highly restrictive. Equity raises account for only a small fraction of total capital formation, and 93% of that is directed toward already public companies.

This leaves a large portion of the industry, particularly private and emerging operators, effectively starved for growth capital.

In most industries, growth attracts capital. In cannabis, the opposite is occurring.

This imbalance has meaningful consequences. Companies are forced to operate conservatively, expansion is slowed, and innovation is constrained, not due to lack of opportunity, but due to lack of funding.

Historically, these conditions have often preceded periods of outsized returns.

From Euphoria to Capitulation

The cannabis sector experienced a classic boom-and-bust cycle, peaking in 2020–2021 amid widespread enthusiasm and speculative capital inflows.

What followed has been a prolonged and painful reset.

Today’s environment, characterised by depressed valuations, limited liquidity, and widespread investor fatigue, is not unusual in the aftermath of a speculative bubble.

The internet dotcom bust didn’t mean the internet wasn’t going to change our world.

After reaching nearly US$20,000 in 2017, Bitcoin crashed to roughly US$2,000, a decline of approximately 90%. I think it turned out well for buyers of that bust.

Commodity markets like energy offer another parallel, where cycles have repeatedly produced outsized returns.

These examples highlight a consistent principle: markets tend to overshoot both on the way up and on the way down.

In all of these examples, if investors took a moment after the bust to assess whether there was a large addressable market opportunity, the answer would have been yes.

The Catalyst in Plain Sight

A major catalyst has already been identified and triggered: the rescheduling of cannabis under US federal law.

This will ultimately eliminate IRS Code 280E, which has cost the industry an estimated US$15 billion since 2018.

The removal of 280E will significantly improve profitability and free cash flow across the sector.

Rescheduling is also expected to improve access to banking, reduce cost of capital, and enable institutional participation.

The Behavioural Gap

Many investors who lost money in prior cycles have exited the sector entirely. This reflects common behavioural biases, where losses outweigh rational reassessment.

Additionally, some investors misunderstand the industry as purely recreational. Consumers understand the non-high health and wellness benefits and look forward to more innovative product introductions stemming from accelerated R&D of the plant’s molecular structure.

The US$7.2 billion acquisition of GW Pharmaceuticals by Jazz Pharmaceuticals highlights the broader pharmaceutical opportunity.

Sentiment vs. Reality

Sentiment remains negative, but reality is improving across growth, profitability, and regulatory clarity.

This divergence does not persist indefinitely.

A Familiar Setup

Periods of maximum pessimism often create the best opportunities.

The cannabis industry today is capital-constrained but growing, undervalued but improving, and supported by a clear catalyst.

For investors focused on forward conditions, the key question is whether the disconnect between perception and reality will persist.

Cannabis is one of the few sectors globally where real revenue, real assets, and real demand exist — yet valuations remain anchored to outdated risk assumptions. That disconnect is the opportunity.

The key questions for investors are these: Is there a large addressable market opportunity in cannabinoids today? Is it an undervalued market relative to other categories? Is there a rare structural change now in play to normalise valuations? And finally, is the return potential asymmetric? Your assessment determines if you should gain exposure at this time.

Sean McLean is the CEO of PPS, a family of ancillary technology companies. Prior to PPS, he spent 30 years working in advisory roles in financial markets, including as an Investment Advisor and certified Family Enterprise Advisor (FEA).