Nothing to look forward toin the near future for the pot sector.)
The probability for the passing of the SAFE Banking Act looks a lot less likely after several high-profile Democratic Senators restated plans to veto the legislation.
We are surprised by the amount of pushback since the legislation would simply allow cannabis companies access to the United States (US) banking system. The primary reason for the pushback is related to how the legislation does not include social and restorative justice measures.
Although Democrats in the House of Representatives included cannabis banking legislation in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (democrat) is working to negotiate a final NDAA with House leaders that does not include the SAFE Banking Act.
According to reports, Senate Majority Leader Schumer wants the legislation to include sentencing reform and believes that people should not be in jail for minor drug offenses. While we fully agree with his view on sentencing reform, the stalling of the SAFE Banking Act is not going to help anyone.
We are of the opinion that the lack of banking services available to US cannabis companies makes the industry a more attractive target for criminals. We believe the stalling of the SAFE Banking Act puts innocent people in harm’s way and are surprised to see pushback from leading Democrats.
From luxury retailers to cannabis dispensaries, criminals have recently started to rob stores across the country. Stores with valuable merchandise or a lot of cash on hand have been the primary targets of criminals and this is a concerning trend.
By not passing the SAFE Banking Act, US cannabis retailers will continue to be at risk and we are going to monitor how legislation advances in 2022. Many cannabis executives expected some form of cannabis legislation to pass before year end and we will monitor how the market responds to the pushback from Senate Majority Leader Schumer.
We continue to view the US as the most attractive cannabis market in the world and have been impressed by the growth of the industry on a year-over-year basis. In the back half of 2021, the US cannabis sector has been under considerable pressure and we will monitor the trend as we approach the end of the year.