MUSIC TO OUR EARS
More Republican lawmakers are changing their tune on cannabis
Shifting attitudes among Republicans toward cannabis are now mirrored in Congress, reports Forbes, where lawmakers are debating not if marijuana should be legalized, but how.
Some of the Republican-led cannabis initiatives include:
- Rep. Don Young’s GRAM Act
- Rep. Greg Steube’s Veterans Cannabis Use for Safe Healing Act
- Rep. Nancy Mace’s States Reform Act
- Congressional Cannabis Caucus co-chair Rep. Dave Joyce’s STATES Act and the Common Sense Cannabis Reform Act
And more than 100 Republicans voted in favour of the SAFE Banking Act in the latest vote in the House of Representatives. And yet, more bipartisan collaboration will be needed to get cannabis reform passed in full, writes Lewis Koski.
“It will take both Republicans and their Democratic colleagues to finally send cannabis legislation to the President’s desk, and it is apparent Republicans are slowly coming along on the topic, and accepting the market exists. It also demonstrates compromise will be required in all forthcoming cannabis legislation for movement to occur.”
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PLEA TO BIDEN
Brittney Griner’s wife Cherelle calls on President Biden for help
Cherelle Griner told ESPN that she last spoke with her wife Brittney, the Phoenix Mercury forward who is detained in Russia for allegedly carrying vape cartridges through security at an airport near Moscow, on Feb. 17.
Griner also said she’s relying on support from the US Secretary of State, the NBA commissioner and WNBA commissioner to get through a difficult time and trusting that her wife is in good legal hands. “Some days they say, ‘She’s really strong. … She seemed in good spirits when we talked.’ And sometimes they’ll say, ‘Her energy was really low,” she said.
She also said she hopes her story reaches President Biden. “There is one person that can go get her, and that’s our president,” she said. “He has that power. You know, I’m just like, ‘Why are we not using it? Like, urgently, use it.’ We’re expecting him to use his power to get it done.”
THE INSIDE SCOOP
Arizona-based Item 9 scoops up Canada’s Sessions Cannabis
Phoenix, Arizona-based Item 9 Labs Corp. announced it’s acquiring Wild Card Cannabis, which operates franchise company Sessions Cannabis, for USD $12.8 million, per MJBizDaily.
Sessions operates 43 cannabis stores in Ontario.
“We have amazing multi-unit franchisees and a solid franchise system that is dedicated to their success, but to further innovate within the industry and expand our reach, we need the right partner,” Sessions CEO and co-founder Steven Fry said in a statement. “We believe we have found that with Item 9 Labs Corp. and their franchise brand, Unity Rd.”
EU INVESTMENT
Opportunity in Europe could be bigger than in the US: Casa Verde managing partner
In a Q&A with BusinessCann, Casa Verde Capital managing partner Karan Wadhera explains why the company has made significant investments in European cannabis companies such as Cansativa, Oxford Cannabinoid Technologies and Sanity Group.
“I’d say in Europe it’s even more interesting [than in the US] a lot of those structural issues I was mentioning are not there, especially access to banking or some of the scheduling and tax issues,” he said. “In Europe, I think there’s potentially an even bigger opportunity to get people excited.”
While he said the increased interest in Europe hasn’t meant investors are turning away from the US entirely, more investors are taking an interest. “Certainly Europe is getting more and more exciting,” he said. “What I’m very hopeful for is that a lot of European investors will start to wake up to the opportunities in their own backyard and start to get more active.”
A US$7.3 BILLION OPPORTUNITY
Cannabis Europa – Investment Day
In the next five years, the European cannabis market is forecast to grow by more than 100% to US$7.3 billion, according to Prohibition Partners. This, coupled with liberal public sentiment towards cannabis legalisation in Europe, is contributing to an exciting time for one of the fastest-growing industries on the continent – and in the world.
The last 12 months has seen an influx of North American investment into the European market, as investors continue to look to Europe as the next lucrative investment opportunity. 29 June will be the dedicated Investor Day at Cannabis Europa. Get your ticket for Cannabis Europa London to see how you can get involved.
