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Both Trades today are BUYs, show as Sell
.00045 MM stepping between BID and ASK, LOL
PVSP shareholders get 4 x Equity Value!!!!
The spin off will leave PVSP shareholders with 80% Equity vs current 13% which a mega gain. The other 20% will be used for future funding ventures and are held by the original Artizen owners.
All current shareholders will of course receive the same % ownership in the NEW Artizen Stock, that they have in the current PVSP stock. If you own 1% of PVSP then you will get 1% ownership in the New Artizen spin off. The new company will only have 100m shares outstanding and PVSP shareholders will get 15% of the new company or 150M shares that will be divided based on your current ownership in PVSP.
PVSP will emerge from the spin off with All or most Debt eliminated, thanks to the recent Debt Conversions.
A Market Cap of $1.4M with Revenue $18M plus, INSANE!!
Anyone with half a brain knows that the current price does not accurately reflect the true value of the company.
With the current depressed values of ALL Cannabis companies, analysis still say the companies are valued at 1 to 2 times trailing revenue, which means PVSP Artizen should have a market cap of at least $18M to $36 today, just on the current revenue numbers.
Actual future value is more like 6 to 8 times revenue so a lot of money is going to be made by those that can stomach the volatility.
Smart Money picking up Bargains
The Debt Conversions are DONE!!
Little painful for some apparently, but for others this has been an opportunity of epic proportions!! LOL
Blaster, what if there is no "Next Dump"? LOL
What happens if the convertible debt is DONE?
What happens if no one jumps off the bridge?
What happens when the Safe Banking Legislation is enacted?
What happens when Artizen spins off with Audited Financials and only 100M outstanding, and a float of only 15 million share?
Paul Riss gets NASDAQ IPO done Ringing Opening Bell Friday!!
Up 91% from IPO price, Nice work Paul congrats, now let's get Artizen to the NASDAQ next year!!
Paul Riss
@PaulRiss
May 19
I am pleased to be part of the team at $MGRM. $30+ per share premarket after a #crowdfunding at $7.25. Ringing the opening bell next Friday. Reg CF and Reg A+ brought the company to #NASDAQ. $NCPL $HTSC $KRTL $DLMI
Here-to-Serve Holding Corp. (OTC:HTSC)
@HeretoServe9
May 19
$HTSC affiliate $MGRM - Monogram Orthopedics stock soars 91% following $17M IPO https://seekingalpha.com/news/3973097-monogram-orthopedics-stock-soars-91-following-17m-ipo.
Watch us ring the opening bell on Friday May 26th
Monogram Orthopedics stock soars 91% following $17M IPO (update)
May 18, 2023 4:37 PM ETMonogram Orthopaedics, Inc. (MGRM)CSSE, KSCPBy: Val Kennedy, SA News Editor10 Comments
Blue IPO background
Andrey Tolkachev
Medical device maker Monogram Orthopedics (NASDAQ:MGRM) stock soared as much as 91% following a $17M initial public offering.
Shares of Monogram opened at $10.15. The stock hit a high of $13.86 in late morning trading before sliding to close at $11.75, up 62% from its IPO price of $7.25.
Monogram went public via a Regulation A+ IPO, a type of offering created under the JOBS Act to give small companies better access to capital. Other past Reg A+ IPOs include Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment (CSSE) and Knightscope (KSCP).
The company said it sold 2.4M shares priced at $7.25, which raised around $17.2M. The offering closed on Wednesday.
Digital Offering served as lead managing selling agent, with R.F. Lafferty as syndicate manager. Selling group members included Cambria Capital, DealMaker Securities and OpenDeal Broker.
Based in Austin, Texas, Monogram is a developer of orthopedic implants, tissue ablation tools, robotic surgical equipment and related software.
Top House Democrat And Republican Congressman File Bill To Prepare For Federal Marijuana Legalization
Published on April 14, 2023By Kyle Jaeger
The top House Democrat and a Republican lawmaker have refiled a bill to lay the groundwork for federal marijuana legalization.
Rep. Dave Joyce (R-OH) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) introduced the Preparing Regulators Effectively for a Post-Prohibition Adult-Use Regulated Environment Act (PREPARE) Act on Thursday.
The incremental reform would direct the attorney general to create a commission charged with making recommendations on a regulatory system for cannabis that models what’s currently in place for alcohol.
“With nearly every state adopting its own set of cannabis reforms, an end to federal cannabis prohibition is inevitable,” Joyce, co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, said in a press release.
“Now is the time for the federal government to respect the will of our constituents and begin the conversation on fair and effective cannabis regulation,” he said. “The PREPARE Act will give lawmakers a bipartisan platform to legislate not only a fair and responsible end to prohibition but also a safer future for our communities.”
The prospects of comprehensive marijuana legalization advancing in the Republican-controlled House this session are questionable, but certain members have expressed confidence that modest reform could be achievable on a bipartisan basis. The PREPARE Act could represent an area of agreement to that end.
“Americans across the political spectrum recognize that now is the time for cannabis reform, and the federal government should be ready to embrace and lead this change,” Jeffries said. “Since the failed war on drugs began over 50 years ago, the prohibition of marijuana has ruined lives, families and communities—particularly communities of color.”
“The PREPARE Act is one of the bipartisan solutions that will lay the groundwork to finally right these wrongs in a way that advances public safety and boosts our economy,” he said. “I am grateful to Congressman Joyce for reintroducing this important bill and his leadership to help the federal government be ready for the inevitable end to cannabis prohibition.”
While legalization legislation was introduced last Congress, with Democrats in control of both chambers plus the White House, they did not advance on the Senate side, with leadership acknowledging the challenge of meeting a 60-vote threshold with a narrow majority.
Advocates are also closely following for developments on a package of incremental reforms that’s expected to contain marijuana banking and expungements legislation. Efforts to push that through last session similarly stalled out.
The PREPARE Act, meanwhile, is mostly identical to the version the lawmakers filed last Congress, with some minor changes to the commission’s responsibilities and legislative appointments.
Here’s what the bill would accomplish:
Require the attorney general to establish a “Commission on the Federal Regulation of Cannabis” within 30 days of the bill’s enactment.
The commission would be responsible for studying federal and state regulatory models for alcohol and make recommendations about how they could inform marijuana regulations.
Among other things, the commission’s report must look at the impact of marijuana criminalization, particularly as it concerns minority, low-income and veteran communities.
The panel would also examine the “lack of consistent regulations for cannabis product safety, use and labeling requirements,” including those related to youth safety, as well as the “lack of guidance for cannabis crop production, sale, intrastate, interstate, and international trade.“
It would also need to make recommendations on how to remedy cannabis-related banking and research barriers as well as address measures to ensure the “successful coexistence of individual hemp and cannabis industries, including prevention of cross pollination of cannabis and hemp products.”
Members would further be mandated to study and make recommendations on “efficient cannabis revenue reporting and collecting, including efficient and tenable federal revenue frameworks.”
The panel would be required to issue a report to Congress within 12 months.
The bill was revised for the new Congress to make it so the commission would also have to look at “requirements to protect youth and reduce harms to youth” as part of its directive to assess the lack of consistent safety standards in marijuana regulations.
Another revision requires the House minority leader to appoint a commission member who is an “expert in the history of cannabis criminalization and the impact of criminalization on various communities, particularly minorities, medical patients, and veterans.”
Previously, the minority leader was tasked with appointing someone who was “medically licensed with substantial knowledge and demonstrated research into cannabis use and medical treatments.” That would instead be the majority leader’s responsibility under the amended bill, whereas the previous version would have had the majority leader appoint a medical cannabis patient or advocate, a role that is no longer contemplated under the new bill.
The commission would also include representatives of:
Department of Health and Human Services
Department of Justice
Department of Agriculture
Department of Veterans Affairs
Department of Interior
Department of Education
Department of Labor
Department of Commerce
National Institutes of Health
Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau
Food and Drug Administration
Internal Revenue Service
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
National Institute of Standards and Technology
Small Business Administration
Nothing to do with any of that, LOL
2022 was the Worst Year Ever for Cannabis companies with Huge price crash from over supply, even while usage actually increased.
Cannabis ETF (MSOS), an actively managed fund focused on domestic multi-state operators, is down 72% in 2022. Two of the largest U.S. cannabis suppliers, Curaleaf (CURLF) and Cresco Labs (CRLBF), are down 57% and 73% this year.
Cannabis has never been so popular, or so cheap. Yet just over half of American adults have never even tried it, providing lots of room for future growth as that percentage shrinks.
Unfortunately for cannabis suppliers, too many of them have invested in this premise, leading to severe oversupply and a crash in prices.
Congress and the federal government may eventually lift the federal prohibition that has cost the industry dearly.
We will get there just going to take longer than many expected.
Cannabis RUN starting 28%, 20%, 13%, 11% !!!!
All up higher mid day!
Watchng for the Close today!
Cannabis companies moving UP, 7% to 16%
Someone may know something with the Safe Banking getting close now.
Tilray up 8%
Sundail up 11%
Aurora up 4.4%
Canopy Growth up 12.4%
Grow generation up 9%
Medmen up 16%
PVSP and IDGlobal management claim Massive Shorting
Very interesting that both Riss companies are accusing Massive Shorting of their stock as the issue on price declines. Not a word about conversions.
They may just be right, IMO this is much more than just some conversions.
IDGlobal Corp
@IDGlobalCorpInc
·
May 19
Replying to
@GoingGreenPicks
The massive shorting of 87 million shares and today it stopped. Maybe the short and distort scheme fund that has attempted to bring our company to our knees finally realized the progress that company management is speaking of puts shorts at huge a risk.
Pervasip Corp
@PervasipC
(5) $PVSP letting the shorts go after yours and our business is simply [...fill in your favorite expression ...]. Time to buy PVSP! At current $ we're easily 5 times below the most conservative value! Do the math! Check the market! Dive into Financials! Shorts are loving it!
Legal Cannabis Sales Expected to Reach $37 Billion in 2023
WOW!!! "US market is expected to make up 81% of Global Cannabis Sales"
The cannabis sector, following a mixed regulatory response, continues to report growing adoption and sales, though delays to meaningful legislation in the US and inflationary concerns have put increased scrutiny on cannabis firms’ path to profitability.
Worldwide legal-cannabis sales are expected to rise 15%, to $37 billion, in 2023, driven primarily by an anticipated 14% gain in the US as a result of increased adoption in legalized states or newly legal states.1 The US market is expected to make up 81% of global cannabis sales, even without federal legalization.2 The Canadian market is projected to see a 12% rise in 2023 sales, to $4.7 billion, accounting for 12% of global sales.3 North America’s dominance should decline in the longer term, we believe, with the next wave of growth emanating from Europe.
Key Takeaways
A large illicit market and varied regulatory landscape have been headaches for the legal cannabis industry, but adoption continues to increase, and worldwide legal-cannabis sales could rise 15%, to $37 billion, in 2023.4
Current operating conditions have cannabis companies focused on increasing efficiencies and positioning for potential legislative victories in the US.
Internationally, supply chain dynamics continue to improve in Canada, and proposed legislation for the legal use of recreational cannabis in Germany could set the stage for broader adoption in Europe.
Legal Weed Sales Projected To Grow 14% in 2023
Legal sales of cannabis in the United States are expected to grow by 14% this year, according to a leading industry market data analysis firm.
BY
A.J. HERRINGTON
MARCH 15, 2023
Sales of legal cannabis in the United States are projected to grow by 14% in 2023, according to a recent report from Colorado-based cannabis industry market analysis firm BDSA. In an updated five-year global legal cannabis market forecast, the company reports that global spending on legal cannabis increased by 4.8% to $32 billion in 2022. BDSA projects that the global cannabis market will see a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 13.2% from 2022 to 2027, resulting in a total worldwide regulated cannabis market size of $59.6 billion by 2027.
The U.S. legal cannabis market has shown significant growth across the industry as more and more states legalize adult-use cannabis and medical marijuana. And while the industry’s growth slowed in 2022 in response to market conditions including rising inflation and economic uncertainty, BDSA expects the U.S. legal weed market to again show significant growth this year, projecting a 14% increase in the market in 2023.
“Legal cannabis spending slowed significantly in 2022 due to rapid price declines across all markets,” Roy Bingham, co-founder and CEO of BDSA, said in a statement from the company. “Despite this, our updated forecast predicts strong growth in the U.S. driven by developing markets, particularly the adult-use markets of Missouri, New Jersey and New York.”
Currently, 21 states have legalized cannabis for adults, while 37 states, the District of Columbia and three U.S. territories have passed laws to legalize the medicinal use of marijuana. Additionally, 11 states permit the use of low-THC cannabis formulations for medicinal purposes. Only Idaho and Nebraska continue to prohibit all forms of cannabis.
Some Mature Cannabis Markets Contracted In 2022
The U.S. cannabis market posted rapid growth during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic as lockdowns kept consumers home and dispensaries were designated as essential businesses in many states. But last year marked the first decline in overall cannabis spending in some mature cannabis markets in the United States. In the West, early cannabis policy reform adopters California, Colorado, Nevada and Oregon saw a combined drop in spending on legal adult-use cannabis of 16.5% in 2022, according to the updated report. BDSA expects most mature cannabis markets in the U.S. to return to positive growth in 2024, although more slowly through 2027 than in the years leading up to the pandemic.
Newer legal cannabis markets showed strong growth in 2022, despite the decline seen in more mature markets. BDSA also projects new legal adult-use cannabis markets to launch by 2027, predicting a start of legal sales in Maryland in 2024 and in Florida and Ohio in 2025. The launch of new recreational marijuana cannabis markets is also possible in Minnesota and Hawaii by 2027, BDSA notes, but the company does not expect to see federal cannabis legalization during the five-year forecast period.
Brian Vicente, founding partner of the cannabis law firm Vicente LLP, agreed that emerging markets will help fuel the growth of the legal cannabis industry in the upcoming years.
“The future remains bright for the cannabis industry in the United States. Despite a recent setback at the polls, with Oklahoma voters shooting down legalization this month, we are still seeing other domestic markets expand and commence sales,” Vicente wrote in an email. “This includes significant revenue growth in newly-legal cannabis markets like Missouri and New Jersey, and also emerging medical markets like Mississippi. With additional states like Florida and Ohio looking likely to legalize in the next several years, we can expect continued expansion in cannabis sales.”
By 2027, U.S. sales of adult-use cannabis are forecasted to contribute 78% of the total spending on legal cannabis worldwide, up from 64% in 2022. U.S. legal cannabis spending is expected to grow at a CAGR of 11.3%, from $26.1 billion in 2022 to $44.5 billion in 2027, with the industry’s growth driven primarily by the New York, Florida, New Jersey and California recreational marijuana markets.
Globally, cannabis markets outside the U.S. and Canada are forecast to grow at a CAGR of 40% to $9.5 billion in 2027, up from $1.8 billion in 2022. BDSA forecasts the Canadian market will see overall growth of 12% this year, increasing to a $5.7 billion market by 2027 at a CAGR of 6.3%. New adult-use markets in Germany and Mexico are expected to be the primary drivers of global growth, while existing limited medical cannabis programs are expected to expand, particularly in the European Union and Latin America.
Cannabis industry will add $100 billion to US economy in 2023,
MJBiz Factbook projects
author profile pictureBy Andrew Long, Data Reporter
April 12, 2023 - Updated May 10, 2023
The total U.S. economic impact generated by cannabis sales is expected to top $100 billion in 2023, up more than 12% from last year, according to a fresh analysis from the newly published MJBiz Factbook.
Looking ahead, upward of $160 billion in additional spending will be added to the U.S economy in 2027, thanks to the opening and/or expansion of new recreational and medical markets in states such as New York, Maryland, Missouri and Kentucky.
To measure the industry’s economic impact, MJBizDaily analyzed similar industries, consulted with economists and applied a standard multiplier of 2 on projected recreational and medical marijuana retail sales.
The projections are a best estimate given the unique nature of the rapidly expanding marijuana industry, which is governed by a patchwork of state laws but remains illegal under federal law.
Marijuana businesses encompass a range of agricultural, manufacturing and retail operators as well as non-plant-touch ancillary companies such as lighting suppliers and law and accounting firms.
Some markets also include cannabis events and hospitality businesses, which tend to have an even higher economic impact than other industries.
The economic impact of the marijuana industry is not the same as supply-chain revenue that is often used to estimate the “total size” of an industry.
The total amount of U.S. adult-use and medical cannabis sales, for example. is expected to reach $34 billion in 2023, up from a revised $30 billion in 2022, according to the new MJBiz Factbook.
By contrast, the economic multiplier paints a picture of the cannabis industry's impact on the broader economy.
In this case, for every $10 consumers and patients spend at marijuana retailers or dispensaries, an additional $20 will be injected into the economy, much of it at the local level.
The marijuana industry has a large impact on the broader economy, both locally and across the nation.
That impact comes directly from the day-to-day needs of workers in the cannabis industry, including spending on life’s necessities such as housing, transportation, entertainment and more.
Taxes collected from cannabis businesses and consumers play a role, too.
Marijuana businesses, consumers and patients pay hundreds of millions of dollars in state and local taxes that are used to fund government activities at those levels, including schools and roads.
Real estate also receives a boost from new retail, manufacturing and agricultural businesses moving into an area, or established companies expanding, increasing broader demand for commercial properties.
In many markets, cannabis companies are restricted in where they can operate, but they often bring new business activity to areas that previously were blighted or couldn’t attract such enterprises.
Bipartisan Pennsylvania Senators Team Up On New Marijuana Legalization Bill
Published 6 hours ago on May 21, 2023By Kyle Jaeger
A bipartisan pair of Pennsylvania senators announced on Friday that they will soon file a bill to legalize marijuana in the Commonwealth.
Senators, Dan Laughlin (R) and Sharif Street (D), who’ve partnered on cannabis reform in previous sessions, shared some details about the forthcoming proposal, which would create a commercial marijuana market for adults 21 and older, in a co-sponsorship memo seeking support from colleagues as they prepare to introduce it.
“Legalized adult use of marijuana is supported by an overwhelming majority of Pennsylvanians and this legislation accomplishes that while also ensuring safety and social equity,” Laughlin said in a press release.
“With neighboring states New Jersey and New York implementing adult use, we have a duty to Pennsylvania taxpayers to legalize adult use marijuana to avoid losing out on hundreds of millions of dollars of new tax revenue and thousands of new jobs,” he said.
While the bill hasn’t been officially filed and the text is not yet available, the senators said that it would “improve upon our proposal from last session.” They described the effort as a “bipartisan approach to legalize adult use marijuana in Pennsylvania.”
Daw Fidler, Laughlin’s legislative director, told Marijuana Moment in an email that the bill is “currently a work in progress” and that the offices “have some changes and updates that we are still working through based off” of the legalization measure they filed last session.
“We are intending to have a bill introduced in June—probably closer to the end of June,” she said. “Once it is introduced and referred to committee, we will work with the committee and stakeholders on any further items that would need to be addressed before a committee vote when they return to session in the fall.”
The senators’ press release says the forthcoming legislation would prioritize public safety, giving law enforcement the ability to “adjudicate” impaired driving and empower them to “eradicate” the illicit market.
Further, the legislation would allow medical cannabis patients to grow their own plants, prohibit marketing that targets youth and “set workplace requirements regarding marijuana use for all those operating in good faith.”
There will also be social equity provisions facilitating expungements for prior marijuana convictions and prioritizing licensing for people most harmed by the drug war, the senators said. They added that the framework will provide “room for new and existing licensees to ensure demand in Pennsylvania is met” and will contain measures aimed at “empowering farmers and craft growers across the state to engage in the cultivation of marijuana in a manner that is safe and regulated.”
Street said that the state has “a unique and singular opportunity to correct decades of mass incarceration, disproportionate enforcement against marginalized communities, the criminalization of personal choice and the perpetuation of violence, which all materialized from the failed war on drugs.”
“Legalizing the adult use of cannabis will help us fully and equitably fund education, lower property taxes, and address a variety of community needs throughout Pennsylvania,” he said.
In the co-sponsorship memo, the senators emphasized that polling shows adult-use legalization “is supported by two-thirds of Pennsylvanians and has majority support in rural, suburban, and urban legislative districts.”
“New Jersey and New York have implemented adult use,” and so it’s “our duty to taxpayers to seize the initiative and legalize marijuana concurrently with bordering states,” they said.
“Failure to do so risks permanently ceding hundreds of millions of dollars of new tax revenue as well as thousands of jobs at a time when taxpayers can least afford it,” the senators wrote to colleagues. “In February 2021 Appropriations hearings, the Pennsylvania Independent Fiscal Office projected the legalization of marijuana for adult use will generate $400 million to $1 billion in new tax revenue for the Commonwealth.”
Meanwhile, Pennsylvania House lawmakers also recently filed separate bills to legalize marijuana sales through state-run stores and to provide permits for farmers and small agriculture businesses to cultivate cannabis once adult-use sales are allowed.
Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) supports enacting cannabis reform and proposed to legalize and tax adult-use marijuana as part of his 2023-2024 budget request in March.
The prospects of enacting legalization increased in the Keystone State after Democrats took control of the House following last year’s election. Republicans have maintained control of the Senate, however, but there are certain GOP members like Laughlin and Mike Regan (R) who’ve backed reform.
Start Buying PVSP, use the offshore accounts! LOL
and keep it quite!
Gordon
BUSINESS Groups Push Senators To Add Marijuana Business Stock Exchange Access To Banking Bill
Published 20 hours ago on May 18, 2023By Kyle Jaeger
A coalition of marijuana advocacy groups is asking that a bipartisan marijuana banking bill be expanded to include provisions ensuring that cannabis businesses have access to all forms of financial services—including the ability to be listed on senior U.S. stock exchanges.
In a letter sent to Senate Banking Committee leadership on Thursday, the coalition SAFE Banking for Equity said that it appreciates that the panel is “treating this issue with the urgency it demands” by holding a hearing focused on cannabis industry financial barriers last week.
But the groups—which include California Minority Alliance, Minorities for Medical Marijuana, Women Grow and National Hispanic Cannabis Council—also said that it was important that the standalone Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act be amended in a fairly significant way that may be a bridge too far for certain advocates focused on comprehensive legalization.
As it stands, the SAFE Banking Act would protect banks that work with state-licensed marijuana businesses and certain depository institutions from being penalized by federal regulators.
What the coalition is asking for is a broader safety net that would free up industry access to “all regulated financial institutions and services, including depository services, lenders, debt and equity financing, capital markets and investment services, insurance, broker dealers, fiduciaries, and credit card and payment processing.”
“Providing the state-legal cannabis industry equal access to financial institutions and resources is key for economic growth,” the letter says. “Without broader access to financial institutions, many entrepreneurs are left without anywhere to turn to secure the funding needed to launch their company or to expand existing operations.”
The groups wrote that limiting cannabis industry financial services access forces operators “to fight for survival against the illicit market—including Chinese-backed investors—with both hands tied behind their backs.”
“If small and minority-owned cannabis companies do not have the capital needed to compete or stay afloat, the state regulated cannabis market will be ceded to criminal enterprises that do not adhere to stringent testing or labeling standards, that do not institute child resistant packaging or care about age limitations, and that do not pay taxes or invest back in their communities. Ultimately, an unchecked illicit market would be catastrophic to legal, regulated businesses, and compromise public health and safety.”
They further asserted that access to U.S. senior exchanges, as opposed to junior exchanges, would “significantly” increase the valuations of small marijuana businesses, “resulting in a dramatic decrease in the amount of equity an entrepreneur would have to cede to get the same investment.”
“Maintaining equity is critical for those operators who hold social equity licenses that require them to maintain majority ownership of their company,” the letter says. “Without access to meaningful capital to convert these social equity licenses or for minority operators to succeed, the states’ efforts to support a more equitable industry are merely checking a box and allowing for small businesses to be shut out while the illicit market profits in the void.”
There was a bill that was filed by Reps. Troy Carter (D-LA) and Guy Reschenthaler (R-PA) last Congress that would have allowed cannabis businesses to be listed on national stock exchanges and access other key financial services, but it did not advance.
So far, congressional leadership hasn’t identified the more expansive financial protections as a priority for the so-called SAFE Plus package that’s being worked on. The plan is to pass the standalone bill as introduced, then take up amendments on the floor.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) has emphasized that those amendments should be focused on promoting equity and addressing the harms of the drug war. He and other colleagues have specifically called for the inclusion of language to facilitate marijuana expungements.
Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) also recently said that she wanted the SAFE Banking Act to pass with an amendment allowing cannabis businesses to access federal Small Business Administration (SBA) services.
The idea of giving small marijuana businesses access to those federal services may be more easily viewed as an equity contribution, whereas the ability of the industry to list on major stock exchanges is a tougher sell that could receive pushback from advocates who are generally skeptical of any incremental reforms that principally benefit corporate interests.
“Allowing Wall Street to invest in marijuana while it remains federally criminalized would demonstrate the federal government prioritizing corporate interests over criminal justice reform,” Cat Packer, vice chair of Cannabis Regulators of Color Coalition (CRCC) and director of drug markets and legal regulation at the Drug Policy Alliance (DPA), told Marijuana Moment on Thursday.
“It’s a joke to think that access to stock exchanges will significantly benefit Black businesses in a way that would justify prioritizing this issue before others that actually impact that lives of individuals and communities most impacted by cannabis criminalization and enforcement,” Packer, who testified as an invited witness at last week’s Senate Banking Committee hearing, said.
Meanwhile, Schumer said that he wants a committee vote scheduled in the panel “in the near future” so that it can advance to the floor where members can discuss proposed additions. Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown (D-OH) also said recently that senators planned to “move quickly” on the SAFE Banking Act.
The majority leader has emphasized his commitment to advancing the marijuana banking legislation with criminal justice provisions included, calling the broader effort to repair the harms of the drug war a “moral responsibility” for Congress.
To some advocates, part of that responsibility means advocating against adding language that could contribute to the industry’s corporate consolidation or threaten to undermine broader legalization efforts.
“I can’t follow the logic that giving large national companies the ability to be publicly traded on Wall Street helps small businesses at all—let alone the idea that stock exchange access is the most urgent cannabis issue and should be prioritized by Congress over freeing incarcerated people or protecting cannabis patients,” Shaleen Title, founder and director of the Parabola Center, told Marijuana Moment.
The Minority Cannabis Business Association tweeted on Thursday that while some its members “would benefit from capital market access, we believe that adding capital market access without significant protections against monopolization + SBA access will only further exacerbate the inequities of the existing marketplace.”
Last month, Schumer said that he was “disappointed” that a so-called SAFE Plus package of cannabis reform legislation didn’t advance last year, saying “we came close,” but “we ran into opposition in the last minute.” He said lawmakers will continue to “work in a bipartisan way” to get the job done.
The majority leader has been holding meetings with Democratic and Republican members in the early months of the new Congress to discuss cannabis reform proposals that might have bipartisan buy-in this year.
Booker said recently that lawmakers are working to “resurrect” the cannabis reform package, acknowledging that failure to advance a banking fix for the industry “literally means that hundreds of businesses go out of business.
Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), who is sponsoring the House version of the SAFE Banking Act, said at a recent press briefing that thinks it’s important that advocates and lawmakers align on any incremental proposals to end the drug war, warning against an “all-or-nothing” mentality.
The American Bankers Association (ABA) also recently renewed its call for the passage of the legislation. And all 50 of its state chapters did the same, as did insurance and union organizations, in recent letters to congressional leadership.
New Share Issued Exactly 350M, All Debt Conversion
Changes in the Number of Outstanding Common Shares:
11/30/2021 4,979,231,963
2/28/2023. 5,329,231,963
Change 350,000,000 shares
Debt Conversions:
3/24/2022 175,000,000 Mommoth Corp
10/28/2022 175,000,000 Mommoth Corp
Total Issued Shares 350,000,000
I am speechless!
12ka Post:
"I have never seen conversions being done ever on a otc stock....such a thing does not exist"
How could you say something like this, you are essentially 100 % wrong.
Nearly every start up company, and actually most companies have convertible debt. I know I am wasting my time trying to enlighten you but do some basic DD.
PVSP CEO even told shareholders that a debt holder had decided to convert some of their debt into 175 Million shares as they wanted to get some of their investment back. We know it was Mammoth as they hold most of PVSP debt.
Marijuana Is Associated With ‘Significant’ And ‘Sustained’ Health Improvements,
American Medical Association Study FindsPublished 1 day ago on May 16, 2023By Kyle Jaeger
SCIENCE & HEALTH
The use of medical marijuana is associated with “significant improvements” in quality of life for people with conditions like chronic pain and insomnia—and those effects are “largely sustained” over time—according to a new study published by the American Medical Association (AMA).
Researchers carried out a retrospective case series analysis that involved 3,148 people in Australia who were prescribed medical cannabis for the treatment of certain eligible conditions.
For all eight wellbeing indicators that were tested, marijuana appeared to help, with adverse side effects that were “rarely serious,” according to the study, published last week in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Health Policy.
Patients were asked to rate their wellness in eight categories on a scale of 0-100 at different stages of treatment. Those categories were general health, bodily pain, physical functioning, physical role limitations, mental health, emotional role limitations, social functioning and vitality.
After administering the survey to the patients about once every 45 days, for a total of 15 follow ups, the study found that participants who were consuming cannabis reported average improvements of 6.6-18.31 points on that 100-point scale, depending on the category.
“These findings suggest that medical cannabis treatment may be associated with improvements in health-related quality of life among patients with a range of health conditions,” the researchers from the Swinburne University of Technology, University of Western Australia and Austin Hospital wrote.
“Patients using medical cannabis reported improvements in health-related quality of life, which were mostly sustained over time.”
The most common conditions for which marijuana was prescribed were non-cancer chronic pain (68.6 percent), cancer-related pain (6.0 percent), insomnia (4.8 percent) and anxiety (4.2 percent).
“The use of cannabis as a medicine is becoming increasingly prevalent,” the study says. “Given the diverse range of conditions being treated with medical cannabis, as well as the vast array of products and dose forms available, clinical evidence incorporating patient-reported outcomes may help determine safety and efficacy.”
The doses, methods of consumptions and cannabinoid profiles of marijuana products that patients used varied significantly. Even so, the “estimated treatment effects were very similar.”
The researchers said that the retrospective case series analysis is limited by the fact that there was not a control, making it more difficult to generalize the results.
“This study suggests a favorable association between medical cannabis treatment and quality of life among patients with a diverse range of conditions,” it concludes. “However, clinical evidence for cannabinoid efficacy remains limited, and further high-quality trials are required.”
This is just the latest in a long list of studies supporting the therapeutic potential of marijuana as more states and countries move to reform their cannabis laws.
For example, another recent study from the University of Colorado found that consistent marijuana use is associated with improved cognition and reduced pain among cancer patients and people receiving chemotherapy.
A separate AMA study that was released earlier this year found that chronic pain patients who received medical cannabis for longer than a month saw significant reductions in prescribed opioids.
AMA also published research late last year that connected state cannabis legalization with reduced opioid prescribing for certain cancer patients. Numerous studies have linked cannabis legalization and self-reported marijuana use to reduced opioid prescribing and overdose deaths.
State-level marijuana legalization is also associated with notable reductions in prescribing of the specific opioid codeine, according to another recent study that leverages data from the federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
Coming together nicely next few months!
1. We get the Audited Financials completed
2 We get the NEW Artizen spin off
3. We up list to the OTCQB from pink
4. We get the California Expansion announcement
5. Safe Banking legislation passes and becomes law
Just to name a few!
Sure feels like the Conversions are done!!!
Only time will tell for sure, meantime BUY'em is the word!!
Stock Price recently valued PVSP at $1.1M with $18M in Revenue, LOL
Cannabis Companies are currently valued at 2 to 4 time trailing revenue, which should put us at $36M to $72M. Super Conservative value would be round $50M.
Currently we are valued 50 times lower than where we should be, even in this extremely depressed market.
This imbalance will not stand, the conversions are over and have contributed to the insane pricing.
Pot Acceptance Is Climbing Even as Illicit Market Has Grown
A study shows that public acceptance of cannabis is growing.
A study shows that public acceptance of cannabis is growing.
ByTiffany Kary
May 15, 2023 at 7:00 AM EDT
Welcome to the latest edition of my weekly newsletter on marijuana and psychedelics. From a Senate hearing on the SAFE Banking Act to psilocybin decriminalization in Connecticut, there was, as usual, a lot going on in my industries last week. But it was this snapshot of where America’s at with weed that I found most interesting.
America’s on board
Cannabis may face financial and regulatory malaise in the US, but that isn’t affecting the perceptions of consumers, who increasingly approve of it.
A survey of nearly 4,400 US marijuana consumers and 1,200 nonusers shows how acceptance and use have grown over the past year alongside the expanding legal and illicit markets. More people report using marijuana, while naysayers are dwindling, according to New Frontier Data, a cannabis consulting firm.
The study also showed that about a third of weed consumers use it multiple times a day, despite new data showing links between heavy marijuana use and health problems such as schizophrenia and heart disease.
An estimated 42% of US consumers have used cannabis and plan to use it again — up from 39% a year ago, the report found. On the flip side, only 30% said they had never used it and never would, down from 34% a year ago. More people were also open to trying it for the first time, while only 13% said they’d never use it again, a percentage point lower than in 2022.
Americans Warm Up to Pot
Acceptance has risen since 2022
Source: New Frontier Data
The snapshot shows an increasingly cannabis-friendly US consumer. For example, 31% of cannabis consumers use it multiple times a day. Among ages 18 to 34, the trend was even more pronounced, with 41% of consumers using multiple times daily. Those numbers have declined since last year, when they were 36% and 46%, respectively. But there’s still no indication that peak pot is coming soon: As more states legalize, the industry is projected to grow 17% to $34 billion in sales in 2023, according to New Frontier’s estimates.
The data shows rising approval despite the fact that legalizing marijuana hasn’t panned out as planned. Creating state-licensed sales was supposed to create a safe supply and get rid of the health risks and organized crime that came with the illicit market.
Instead, underground sales of the drug have grown over the past few years, rising to $77 billion in 2022 from $70 billion in 2020, according to New Frontier estimates.
The report does project that the illicit market will decline to $73 billion in 2023, however. The legal market is projected by New Frontier to grow steadily in the coming years while the illicit market is seen slipping slightly.
Pot Habits
The youngest cannabis users partake the most often
Source: New Frontier Data
Nor has cannabis replaced alcohol use, as proponents of “California Sober” have hoped. The study found instead that cannabis users are more likely to consume alcohol, and generally do it more often. While only 21% of cannabis nonusers drink alcohol a few times a week, 34% of cannabis users drink that often, the report found.
Despite the projections for growth, marijuana stocks have slumped in recent years amid stalled progress toward legalization at the federal level. While a growing number of states are legalizing cannabis, federal lawmakers have been unable to break an impasse on legislation that would give the industry greater access to financial services, let alone a full legalization. Last year, President Joe Biden called for a review of the drug’s classification — a process that could prove lengthy.
Number of the week
41% of cannabis consumers age 18 to 34 say they use it multiple times a day, according to New Frontier's report.
Quote of the week
“Cannabis is being held a political hostage. It’s only made it halfway to the dream, which is difficult to achieve without legal clarity.”
Cannabis groups pleased with SAFE Banking hearing as senators push for expungement
author profile pictureBy Kate Robertson, Writer
May 11, 2023
Cannabis industry groups were heartened Thursday to hear bipartisan support from members of the U.S. Senate Banking Committee for marijuana banking reform – particularly, passage of the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act.
The Democratic-controlled banking panel convened the hearing about the challenges that a largely cash-based industry poses to small businesses and employees.
If lawmakers were to approve the SAFE Banking legislation, federal banking regulators would be prohibited from punishing financial institutions that offer basic banking services to marijuana businesses following state law.
While the outlook for passage appears better than in previous years, industry officials and congressional watchers say that approval is far from assured.
“The hearing showcased thoughtful discussion from members on both sides of the aisle, with a consensus among witnesses that the bill could go further to be most impactful, which should include providing broader access to financial services during committee markup,” Saphira Galoob, executive director of advocacy group National Cannabis Roundtable, said in a statement.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, said at the hearing that SAFE Banking is “long overdue” but that she is also working on the descheduling of marijuana.
“If people can still get busted for purchasing marijuana, many banks will find it too risky to serve legal cannabis businesses, no matter whether we tell them it is technically OK,” she added.
Sen. Steve Daines, a Republican from Montana who reintroduced the legislation last month with Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, emphasized the safety risks of cash transactions in marijuana businesses, which are vulnerable to burglaries.
“To enter the banking system will help law enforcement more easily distinguish legitimate actors and focus more of their resources on prosecuting the illicit market.”
Support for SAFE
At the same time, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, along with two Democratic colleagues, endorsed adding marijuana expungement legislation to the SAFE Banking measure.
“We were encouraged to see the SAFE Banking Act reintroduced last week after Senator Daines and Senator Merkley worked to make key improvements to the legislation,” Schumer said in a statement along with Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden and New Jersey Sen. Corey Booker.
“We look forward to watching this legislation progress through the Banking Committee and working with bipartisan partners to include additional improvements, such as the Harnessing by Pursuing Expungement (HOPE) Act, which would support states that want to expunge cannabis record with grants.”
Witnesses Merkley and Daines were joined by:
Ademola Oyefeso, international vice president and director of the legislative and political action department at the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW).
Michelle Sullivan, chief risk and compliance officer at Dama Financial.
Kevin Sabet, president, CEO and fellow at Smart Approaches to Marijuana.
Cat Packer, the vice chair at the Cannabis Regulators of Color Coalition.
During the worker- and small business-focused hearing, Packer and Oyefeso shared with the committee how barriers to banking and financial services harm cannabis employees and efforts to create equitable business opportunities.
Workers who are paid in cash are vulnerable to theft, Oyefeso said, and some employees aren’t able to show adequate proof of employment to qualify for mortgages or leases. Others can’t secure loans, he said.
Giving cannabis workers better banking services would give them better financial stability, he said.
“Cannabis workers do not deserve to be treated as criminals,” Oyefeso said, “and should not have to struggle with financial and legal ambiguity on the job.”
Packer urged Congress to push for more comprehensive reform beyond banking, which she said was the only way to adequately address the harms of federal prohibition.
She added that the SAFE Banking Act could be more equitable if it included language ensuring that previous marijuana convictions wouldn’t be “red flags” used to reject loan applicants or those seeking access to financial services.
“It’s true that small businesses and workers can’t afford to be shut out of banking,” Packer said.
“But it’s also true that they can’t afford for disparities in traditional banking to become the new norm for cannabis banking.”
Senate holds first hearing on bill to help marijuana businesses access financing
MARIJUANA
PUBLISHED THU, MAY 11 20239:10 AM
Stefan Sykes
Chelsey Cox
KEY POINTS
The Senate is holding its first hearing Thursday on the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act.
Last month, a group of bipartisan lawmakers reintroduced the SAFE Banking Act in the House and Senate.
The legislation will free up banking services for the cannabis industry.
Aaron Smith, chief executive officer of the National Cannabis Industry Association, speaks during a news conference on the Safe Banking Act outside the US Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2022.
Aaron Smith, chief executive officer of the National Cannabis Industry Association, speaks during a news conference on the Safe Banking Act outside the US Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2022.
The Senate Banking Committee is holding its first-ever hearing Thursday on a bipartisan bill that would allow the cannabis industry to access traditional banking services — which marijuana businesses see as critical to their survival.
The meeting, titled “Examining Cannabis Banking Challenges of Small Businesses and Workers,” will hear testimony from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, including Sens. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Steve Daines, R-Mont., who reintroduced the standalone bill last week. The committee will also hear from witnesses including the Cannabis Regulators of Color Coalition, Drug Policy Alliance and the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union.
Thursday’s hearing will determine next steps in getting the bill to the Senate floor for a vote, as Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and other key lawmakers express support for it. It comes as the marijuana industry, which is facing a downturn even as more states approve legal markets, has pushed Congress to take action on the issue.
“Without full access to the banking and payments system, legal cannabis businesses are forced to operate in the shadows,” said Sen. Sherrod Brown, an Ohio Democrat and chairman of the committee, during opening remarks.
Many business owners also rely funds from friends and family in lieu of small business and bank loans because “they might go through all the cost and effort, only to be denied,” Brown said.
Echoing Brown, committee ranking member Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., said that “Congress has a responsibility to ensure that all legal industries have access to financial institutions and services.”
But he added that lawmakers must eliminate the possibility of loopholes in money-laundering laws before the act becomes law. Any loopholes could make it harder for law enforcement to catch drug and weapons traffickers, Scott said.
Senate action on the bill is welcome news to executives across the industry, including Craig Sweat, the owner of Uncle Budd NYC, the company that first brought mobile dispensary trucks to New York City.
“I’ve been held up for so long that I have product that is sitting and getting old,” said Sweat, who after years of operating his mobile dispensary company and then a delivery service, has entered into a lucrative manufacturing and licensing partnership with Omnium Canna to produce his products.
“I have no way of transferring funds, I can’t pay staff, I’m just sitting on my hands,” Sweat said, adding that his latest business venture hasn’t been able to launch as banks, fearful of federal prosecution, have been giving him the “runaround.”
Marijuana banking bill heads to Senate Banking Committee
Reuters
May 11 (Reuters) - Shares of pot companies were trading higher on Thursday as the U.S. Senate Banking Committee prepares to discuss the SAFE Banking Act, a crucial legislation that would make it easier for the cannabis industry to access banking services.
If the bill advances through the committee stage, it would be voted by the Senate for the first time. The bill has been passed by the House of Representatives seven times in the past.
Industry insiders are cautiously optimistic that the bill, which has bipartisan support, will be signed into law this time.
Goodness Growth Holdings Inc (GDNS.CD), Cresco Labs Inc (CL.CD), Cronos Group Inc , SNDL (SNDL.O), Trulieve Cannabis (TRUL.CD) and Aurora Cannabis were up between 0.60% and 8.6% in early trading.
BRADY COBB - CEO, SUNBURN CANNABIS & DC LOBBYIST
"This time (it) feels different. With strong bipartisan support and committee leadership, coupled with the majority leader's recent pivot to a position of support, I expect the hearing to be favorable and for a mark up and floor vote to be scheduled in coming weeks."
MATT HAWKINS - FOUNDER & MANAGING PARTNER, ENTOURAGE EFFECT CAPITAL
"SAFE Banking's bicameral nature this time around is an encouraging step forward compared to its past filings, but the outcome of hearing will provide much-needed context. If Congress truly cares about representing public opinion and supporting hardworking entrepreneurs, they must come together to finally pass this much-needed reform."
JIM CACIOPPO - CEO, CHAIRMAN AND FOUNDER, JUSHI HOLDINGS INC
"Instead of squandering another opportunity, Congress has a chance to pass the SAFE Banking Act. Cannabis businesses have continued to pay more than their fair share of state, federal, Social Security and Medicare taxes, and it's time we stop discriminating against the industry."
TROY DATCHER - CEO, THE PARENT COMPANY
"In this challenging economic environment, swift passage (of the bill) is crucial for the tens of thousands of state-licensed and ancillary cannabis businesses. This legislation will also help address the public safety risks that have been created by forcing a $30 billion industry to operate largely in cash."
MORGAN PAXHIA, MANAGING PARTNER OF POSEIDON INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT AND $PSDN CANNABIS ETF
"This is the first of several steps for the Senate to proceed forward to a vote so this was very welcome to say the least. The American Bankers Association is pleading for fast tracking to a vote in the Senate and we support their plea."
American Bankers Association Calls For ‘Swift Passage’ Of Marijuana Banking Bill Ahead Of Senate Committee Hearing
May 9, 2023By Kyle Jaeger
The American Bankers Association (ABA) is renewing its call for the passage of a bipartisan marijuana banking bill that was refiled last month.
Days before the Senate Banking Committee is scheduled to discuss the issue at a marijuana-focused hearing, ABA sent a letter to congressional leadership voicing “strong support” for the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act.
The association said that this “important legislation would help bring certainty to an important issue that has become a challenge for so many of our nation’s communities and the banks that serve them.”
“The SAFE Banking Act is an urgently needed, and widely supported, bipartisan solution that will allow banks to handle not only the proceeds from both state-licensed cannabis businesses and the ancillary businesses—accountants, skilled trades, landlords, law firms, and other service providers—those businesses rely upon to operate, but also accept deposits from and make loans to employees of those businesses,” the letter says.
While the measure has passed the House several times in recent sessions, it’s repeatedly stalled in the Senate under both Democratic and Republican control. This time, however, the Senate is taking the lead, starting with Thursday’s Banking Committee hearing.
“Federal law currently prevents banks from banking cannabis businesses and these ancillary businesses, without fear of federal sanctions,” ABA said. “As a result, this industry is operating primarily in cash, which is not only a public safety risk, but also undermines the ability for regulators, tax collectors, and law enforcement to monitor the industry effectively.”
The association said that it does not take a position on federal cannabis legalization but that its “member banks find themselves in conflict between state and federal law, with local communities encouraging them to bank cannabis businesses and federal law prohibiting it.”
ABA has consistently advocated for the SAFE Banking Act—with letters to Congress, polling that shows public support for the financial reform and events where lawmakers have promoted the legislation.
The Senate must act on legislation clarifying cannabis banking rules
BY PAUL ARMENTANO, OPINION CONTRIBUTOR - 05/10/23 5:00 PM ET
Associated Press/Sean Murphy
Ethan McKee, vice president of Mango Cannabis, displays marijuana flowers at a dispensary, Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2023, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Sean Murphy)
Members of the U.S. Senate Committee of Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs are scheduled to discuss legislation tomorrow, the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act, that seeks to normalize relations between state-licensed cannabis businesses and financial institutions.
The advancement of the SAFE Banking Act is crucial to the health and safety of the tens of millions of consumers who patronize state-legal cannabis markets. That is because, under current federal law, the multi-billion-dollar state-legal cannabis market must operate largely as a cash-only business. This makes state-licensed cannabis businesses more susceptible to theft and it makes these establishments more difficult to audit. It also places the safety and welfare of their customers at risk, as patrons must carry significant amounts of cash on their persons to make legal purchases at retail facilities. Similarly, it needlessly jeopardizes the safety of retail staffers, who are susceptible to robbery.
To date, 22 states permit retail cannabis sales to adults and 38 states authorize the sale of medical cannabis products. Yet, these tens of thousands of state-licensed businesses continue to struggle to legally obtain a bank account because of outdated federal policies. According to statistics provided by the Treasury Department, only about 11 percent of all U.S. banks and about four percent of all credit unions are “actively providing banking services to marijuana-related businesses.” This lack of access to financial services hinders these businesses’ abilities to gain a market foothold and further disrupt the unregulated, underground marketplace.
Every day that Congress fails to act endangers the livelihood of these small businesses and their consumers, puts local regulators and law enforcement at a disadvantage and facilitates the activities of unlicensed operators and criminal organizations. Survey data compiled last year by Whitney Economics reported that over 70 percent of participating cannabis businesses say the “lack of access to banking or investment capital” is their top challenge.
Passing the SAFE Banking Act will address these problems. That is why it is supported by businesses, voters and civil rights groups. Polling data shows that 72 percent of voters — including nearly two-thirds of Republicans — support allowing licensed cannabis businesses to lawfully access U.S. financial systems.
The NAACP also backs this legislative change, stating, “The SAFE Banking Act could enable cannabis businesses with social equity licenses, diverse ownership licenses, or other licenses made available by states with medical- and adult-use cannabis laws that aim to foster a diverse and equitable industry, to better compete in the industry.” So does the American Bankers Association, which recently opined that the legislation’s passage is “urgently needed … to provide legal and regulatory clarity” for banks and for members of law enforcement.
In short, no industry can operate safely, transparently or effectively without access to banks or other financial institutions and it is self-evident that the players in this industry (smaller and minority-owned businesses in particular), and those consumers that are served by it, will remain severely hampered without better access to credit and financing.
Ultimately, Congress must amend federal policy so that these growing numbers of state-compliant businesses, and those millions of Americans who patronize them, are no longer subject to policies that undermine their ability to conduct transactions safely and effectively.
Senate Committee Adds New Witnesses For Marijuana Banking Hearing This Week
Published 4 hours ago on May 10, 2023By Kyle Jaeger
The U.S. Senate Banking Committee has added new witnesses who will testify at a hearing on bipartisan marijuana banking bill this week.
In addition to the top bipartisan sponsors of the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act, an equity-focused cannabis reform activist, a union representative, a cannabis financial services company executive and a leading prohibitionist advocate will also share their perspective on the legislation and underlying financial services issues in the cannabis industry at Thursday’s hearing.
Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown (D-OH) said last week that senators planned to “move quickly” on the legislation from Sens. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and Steve Daines (R-MT).
Beside Merkley and Daines, here are the witnesses that have been added to testify at the committee hearing:
Cat Packer, Cannabis Regulators of Color Coalition (CRCC) and Drug Policy Alliance (DPA)
Packer is a former Los Angeles cannabis regulator who now serves as vice chair of CRCC and director of drug markets and legal regulation at DPA.
Following the reintroduction of the SAFE Banking Act last month, she applauded “technical” changes that were made to promote equity. She has emphasized the need to resolve marijuana banking issues, but to do so in a way that specifically supports communities that have been disproportionately harmed by the war on drugs.
CRCC released a paper last year that proposed several changes to the SAFE Banking Act that members said would sharpen its equity impacts and help make the bill more acceptable to those who’ve insisted that sweeping justice-focused legalization must be prioritized ahead of modest financial reform.
One of the organization’s recommendations—to extend protections to Minority Depository Institutions (MDIs) and Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs)—was incorporated in the latest version of the bill.
DPA has also advocated for equity language as part of the banking reform legislation.
Ademola Oyefeso, United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW)
Oyefeso is the director of UFCW’s legislative and political action department. The union organization, which represents over one million workers, has routinely advocated for cannabis reform—including urging President Joe Biden to support legalization alongside other advocacy groups.
UFCW, which has been working to organizer marijuana sector workers in legal states, has also pushed for specific priorities in state-level reform, such as labor peace agreement requirements as part of legalization legislation.
Michelle Sullivan, Dama Financial
Sullivan is the chief risk and compliance officer at Dama Financial, which provides services to state-licensed marijuana businesses, working to navigate the tricky federal regulations on behalf of companies that are seeking banking services.
Kevin Sabet, Smart Approaches To Marijuana (SAM)
Sabet is the CEO of SAM, one of the leading figures working to defeat legalization efforts.
SAM has opposed the SAFE Banking Act, arguing that it would enrich the industry and that it’d potentially be abused by bad actors. The organization has also maintained that, contrary to what the bill’s advocates say, that it would exacerbate inequities in the cannabis market.
Senators on both sides of the aisle have been pushing for urgent action on the standalone SAFE Banking Act, which would protect banks that work with state-legal cannabis businesses from being penalized by federal regulators.
The latest version has been amended in several ways that have encouraged advocates, the plan is to further revise it on the floor to incorporate additional equity provisions.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said at a cannabis rally in New York City on Saturday that he would bring the bill to the floor after it clears committee, and he emphasized that it would be revised to include expungements provisions.
The bill is considered one of the more passable pieces of cannabis legislation this session with Republicans in control of the House. A former top aide to Schumer recently wrote an op-ed for Marijuana Moment explaining how the new political dynamics could actually bolster the bill’s prospects of passage this year.
Schumer has emphasized his commitment to advancing the marijuana banking legislation with criminal justice provisions included, calling the broader effort to repair the harms of the drug war a “moral responsibility” for Congress.
A vote in the Senate last month on separate marijuana legislation, however, has raised some questions about whether any modest cannabis reform is achievable under the current congressional makeup. Senate Republicans blocked a procedural motion to advance a bipartisan bill to simply require studies into the medical potential of cannabis for military veterans with chronic pain and PTSD.
The standalone SAFE Banking Act has been approved along largely bipartisan lines in the House in some form several times in recent years. But it’s consistently stalled out in the Senate under both Democratic and Republican leadership.
Last month, Schumer said that he was “disappointed” that the so-called SAFE Plus package of marijuana banking and expungements legislation he worked on last year didn’t advance, saying “we came close,” but “we ran into opposition in the last minute.” He said lawmakers will continue to “work in a bipartisan way” to get the job done.
The majority leader has been holding meetings with Democratic and Republican members in the early months of the new Congress to discuss cannabis reform proposals that might have bipartisan buy-in this year.
For his part, Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) said recently that lawmakers are working to “resurrect” the cannabis reform package, acknowledging that failure to advance a banking fix for the industry “literally means that hundreds of businesses go out of business.
Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), who is sponsoring the House version of the SAFE Banking Act, said at a recent press briefing that thinks it’s important that advocates and lawmakers align on any incremental proposals to end the drug war, warning against an “all-or-nothing” mentality.
The American Bankers Association (ABA) also recently renewed its call for the passage of the legislation.
BID Volume is more than Entire Conversion, LOL
Wicked rebound coming very soon!!
Feels like they want these done now, before the Audited Financials released and the Spin Off.
PVSP Market Cap is now $1.3M, March Revenue $1.3M, LOL
This is beyond insane, one month sales is equal to our total market cap?
Company valued at $1.3 M and produces over $17 Million a year!
Just say Thank You for the Gift!
Artizen March Sales $1,26 Million
Not bad, as pricing is starting to improve from past 2 years and we should see some nice numbers in 2023 as volume and pricing grow.
Expanding to other states great way to grow the business.
https://www.topshelfdata.com/wa/lacey/artizen-cannabis-company-1
Missouri surpasses $1 billion in legal cannabis sales since February legalization
Dang that is impressive, they did the entire Oregon Market in just 3 months!! Artizen has to move into these NEW larger markets, NY
by MEREDITH HOOD | KRCG StaffTue, May 9th 2023, 7:37 PM EDT
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KRCG) — Last Tuesday, the Show-Me State surpassed the $1 billion dollar mark in legal cannabis sales, according to the Missouri Division of Cannabis Regulations.
The sale of cannabis for recreational use among adults began on February 3rd. In the first three months since sales began, businesses sold $256.2 million dollars for recreational use and another $94 million for medical use.
For comparison, businesses in Illinois, a state with twice the population of Missouri, sold a total of $188.1 million worth of cannabis products in the first three months of legal sales to adults back between January and March of 2020.
The sale of cannabis products in Missouri for medical use only began in October 2020.
NYS Office of Cannabis Management
Very interesting that the Artizen gang is at NYS Office of Cannabis Management, must be looking for a grower license!
@nys_cannabis
21+| Resources, Updates, & Events
Planting seeds for equity & opportunity in New York cannabis
#NYCCB Cannabis Control Board + #NYCAB Cannabis Advisory Board
New York StateCannabis.ny.govJoined April 2021
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14K Followers
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Artizen in New York? That would be Major Win!
$PVSP ... oh! And did I just see some Artizen guys in NY? ????
@nys_cannabis
11:38 AM · May 10, 2023
·
67
Views
How could you not anticipate raising capital?
It is the whole purpose of doing a spin off!
Atizen has said that many times it is doing the spin off to be able to access capital markets with favorable shareholder terms.
Having ability to access capital markets is the the main reason a company would go public, otherwise you might as well stay private.
All trades are double counts with MM
Pink is not a listed exchange, all trades are made with MM, no direct trades between Buyer and Sellers like on Nasdaq or NYSE.
And in the Conversion swap the Purple trades and you have Triple counts in many instances.
The MM are "Short" on the ASK which is normal, they take those trades and have the cash but will need to cover the trade by end of the day. They are doing that during the day and you can see the exact double trade sizes many times, one at .0005 and the other at .00045 for example.
End of day we see the Purple Tape, the T - Trade if after hours, which is made lower than the BID which is why it is recorded Purple. That is the Covering of the Conversion trade.
They have moved the daily Conversion Volume up significantly the past few week and it looks like 18 Million shares is the daily limit for them.
5/8 - 18M
5/4 - 17M
5/3 - 2M (vol only 5M)
5/2 - 4M
5/1 - 18M
4/28 - 4.3M
4/26 - 18M
4/25 - 16.6M
You get the idea, and with 170M converted by Mammoth we have to done soon.
Audited financials done, closing out the debt conversion this week
IMO we should be getting some major news here any day now. The pace of debt conversion has really picked up the past week and today we already have 30 Million on the tape.
You must be constipated, hope it is not serious