This week in weed, we’ve got developments on both coasts and a new initial public offering (IPO) in the Great White North.
Slang Worldwide, a cannabis company founded by two industry veterans, began trading on the Canadian Securities Exchange earlier this week. Canopy Growth, one of our First Stage Investor portfolio holdings, is poised to acquire 15% of Slang if the U.S. legalizes marijuana at the federal level.
Slang founders Billy Levy and Peter Miller have a history with Canopy – they co-founded another medical marijuana company that Canopy bought out for around $323 million. And Slang has a focus on branded products, which is something that drew us to Canopy. We’re keeping an eye on this one.
Down south, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has been making changes to the state’s medical marijuana laws. He’s hoping to legalize the smoking of medical marijuana and make industry requirements more business-friendly.
Over in California, where recreational marijuana is fully legal, the marijuana market should be booming. But the state’s regulations and taxes are choking the life out of the industry. Rather than crack down on black market sales, perhaps the state should focus on creating a more affordable legal market.