MMJ Business Daily

NY License Winner Had Banking Strategy

A company that won a license to grow and sell medical cannabis in New York expects to leverage its existing banking relationships in other states to obtain financial services for its new location.

Columbia Care has “a number of banking partners to facilitate in-person payment and electronic payment” in its MMJ businesses in Arizona, Massachusetts, Illinois, Nevada and Washington DC, according to the New York Business Journal.

Columbia Care CEO Nicholas Vita reportedly reached out to those partners about its desire to expand into New York. He asked them three questions: What can his company do better, how

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NY License Winner Had Banking Strategy is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Canada to Crack Down on Dispensary Ads

Marketing efforts by Canadian dispensaries that aren’t federally licensed will face more scrutiny after the country’s health agency said it will aggressively monitor cannabis-related advertisements.

Health Minister Rona Ambrose said in a statement that she directed Health Canada to take “a more proactive approach to monitoring illegal advertising of marijuana by non-regulated parties” under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. The move is a change from prior enforcement in which Health Canada would act mostly after a complaint.

Only licensed producers are allowed to advertise on a limited basis. The agency will monitor dispensary web sites to identify

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Canada to Crack Down on Dispensary Ads is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

State-Run Marijuana Bank Proposed in California

California led the way in medical marijuana legislation, and some officials hope it will do the same when it comes to cannabis banking.
The California Tax Board is proposing the creation of a state-run bank where cannabis companies can deposit their mo…

Chart of the Week: 72% Increase in Energy Use By Denver Marijuana Cultivation Sites Since 2012

By Becky Olson
The marijuana industry has boomed in Denver over the past few years, and its energy consumption has soared in lockstep along the way.
Power use by commercial marijuana growing sites in the city surged an estimated 72% from 2012 to 2014.
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New York Announces MMJ License Winners

New York has awarded licenses to grow, process and dispense medical marijuana to five businesses, including three that are already operating MMJ companies in other states or have permits to do so. PharmaCann, Empire State Health Solutions, Columbia Care NY, Etain and Bloomfield Industries were awarded licenses to each operate one cultivation facility and four […]

New York Announces MMJ License Winners is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

California MMJ Foe Melinda Haag Stepping Down

Melinda Haag, the U.S. attorney who has aggressively targeted California cannabis businesses in recent years, will vacate her position effective Sept. 1, sending cheers throughout the state’s marijuana industry. Haag sought to shut down dispensaries even after memos from the Department of Justice and a spending bill passed in December said U.S. attorneys shouldn’t spend […]

California MMJ Foe Melinda Haag Stepping Down is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Cannabis Credit Union Denied By the Fed, Files Lawsuit

An upstart credit union in Colorado that hoped to serve the marijuana industry and had state backing has been denied a master account by the U.S. Federal Reserve, which threatens to close another avenue for cannabis businesses seeking a bank account. The Fourth Corner Credit Union was reportedly informed earlier this month that it wasn’t […]

Cannabis Credit Union Denied By the Fed, Files Lawsuit is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

New DEA Head: Marijuana ‘Probably’ Not as Bad as Heroin

If the newly installed chief of the Drug Enforcement Agency isn’t an ally of marijuana, at least he’s not a total prohibitionist. Acting Administrator Chuck Rosenberg, who took over for Michele Leonhart as head of the DEA in May, said this week that cannabis is “probably not” as dangerous as heroin, according to US News […]

New DEA Head: Marijuana ‘Probably’ Not as Bad as Heroin is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Ohio Legalization Group’s Efforts to Be Scrutinized

The beleaguered campaign to legalize medical and recreational marijuana in Ohio now faces yet another challenge. The Ohio secretary of state has assigned a special prosecutor to look into “suspicious and possibly fraudulent” activity by the group, particularly in regards to its efforts to gather signatures and register voters. A former county prosecutor will reportedly […]

Ohio Legalization Group’s Efforts to Be Scrutinized is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Drug Abuse Expert: CBD is ‘Safe,’ Has Medicinal Benefits

A  key drug abuse expert has come out publicly saying that CBD is safe and may have “therapeutic value for a number of medical conditions,” giving ammunition to advocates in favor of rescheduling or descheduling cannabis and bolstering businesses focused on cannabidiol. Nora Volkow, director of the US National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), made […]

Drug Abuse Expert: CBD is ‘Safe,’ Has Medicinal Benefits is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs