At first blush, it would appear that cannabis is not within our ballywick at FintekNews (after all, our site is not named CannabisNews), but we have periodically covered the sector as there are many issues related to fintech and regtech around this industry. For that reason, we asked our friend Garrett Baldwin to provide us some insight into the industry after attending a session on cannabis investing at the recent SALT 2019 conference in Las Vegas. More below......Cindy Taylor/Publisher
By Garrett Baldwin
The cannabis industry continues to generate incredible returns for investors.
Just a $1,000 investment in Aurora Companies in early 2016 would have delivered investors a return of $20,600 in three short years. That same investment in Cronos Group would have delivered more than $70,000 in the same period.
But those returns might be conservative according to some advocates.
The question is where marijuana stocks will go should recreational cannabis achieves legalization at the federal level.
Recently, I sat in the second row of the SALT Conference, the premier money management event in Las Vegas.
Moderated by Sam Masucc, CEO and Founder of ETFMG, this morning’s panel on cannabis investment started with a simple question.
Is it safe to invest in cannabis?
However, the panel shifted into a more in-depth discussion about the sector not just in the United States and Canada, but also around the globe. The following is a recap of insight from the panel on regulation, cannabis investment, and the timing of federal legalization.
Thoughts from Ron Geffner, Sadis & Goldberg
Ron Geffner is a former lawyer at the SEC and is now a partner at ALTS Capital. If anyone knows how U.S. financial watchdogs are eyeing cannabis, it would be him.
During the panel, Ron Geffner recounted that marijuana became a Schedule I drug during the Nixon Administration. Now, more than 30 years later, even though states have begun to legalize marijuana both for medicinal and recreational purposes, a conflict exists between the United States Federal government and state laws.