Marijuana Business Magazine May-June 2019

Marijuana Business Magazine | May-June 2019 16 BIG HITS Altria Invests $1.8 Billion in Cronos Group U.S. tobacco giant Altria Group closed on its $1.8 billion (CA$2.4 billion) investment in Ontario-based cannabis producer Cronos Group. The investment—the largest by a tobacco firm in the industry—allows Altria to hold a 45% stake in Cronos with a warrant opportunity to raise that to 55%. BlackRock Discloses $11 Million Investment in Curaleaf BlackRock, one of the world’s largest money managers, disclosed in regulatory filings that its funds have an $11 million stake in Curaleaf Holdings, a Massachusetts-based medical cannabis company. While the investment is tiny for BlackRock, which has nearly $6 trillion of assets under management, the stake is one of the first publicly disclosed investments by a major institutional investor into U.S. cannabis. The investment makes BlackRock the largest institutional investor in Curaleaf, according to Bloomberg. Gotham Green Partners to Invest Up to $250 Million in MedMen MedMen, a California-based multistate marijuana operator, said it will receive an investment of up to $250 million from private equity fund Gotham Green Partners. The investment—a convertible credit facility—is believed to be the largest to date by a single investor in a publicly traded cannabis company with U.S. operations. The money will go toward a number of corporate activities, including potential acquisitions, investment in technology and increased cultivation and production, MedMen said. Illinois Marijuana Firm Grassroots Closes $90 Million Raise Chicago-based Grassroots said it completed a $90 million capital raise designed to expand the company’s footprint and operations. Grassroots, a vertically integrated cannabis company that operates in 11 states, said it will use the funds to expand cultivation facilities in Illinois, Maryland and Pennsylvania; build out newly secured dispensary licenses; bankroll the company’s strategic partnership with Phyto Science Management Group in Vermont; and finance future mergers and acquisitions. Treehouse Closes $45.5 Million Private Placement Treehouse Real Estate Investment Trust, a Los Angeles-based real estate investment firm, said it closed on $45.5 million of private placement shares. The proceeds will be used to invest in cannabis real estate facilities in both recreational and medical marijuana states, including Arizona, California, Florida, Nevada and New York. Michigan Medical Cannabis Cultivator Raises $30 Million-Plus for Expansion Green Peak Innovations, a medical cannabis cultivator based in Lansing, Michigan, raised more than $30 million in an oversubscribed debt round. The funds will be used to support Green Peak’s expansion in Michigan as well as plans to take the company’s “scalable model to other states,” CEO Jeff Radway said. Innovative Properties Closes $26 Million Debt Offer Innovative Properties, an investment group doing business as Nabis Holdings in Surrey, British Columbia, said it closed on a $26.3 million (CA$35 million) offering of private debentures. The proceeds will be used to fund cannabis-related investments and bankroll strategic investment opportunities. It also will be used for general corporate purposes, the company said. What do you look for when choosing which companies to invest in? It starts with management first and foremost. Are you able to scale? Do you understand scale, how to commercialize? Do you understand how to build a business? That is our cornerstone. Then, it is about defending your position. How easy is it to get into your sandbox? How much runway do you have? Is it sustainable? Can you execute? Get access to more in-depth market analysis, premium features on cannabis investing trends and monthly executive webcasts with Investor Intelligence. $7.2 MILLION Sales of medical marijuana in Oklahoma totaled $7.2 million in February—up from $4.3 million in January— providing further evidence that the state’s new MMJ industry is rocketing ahead. The February total represents a fourfold increase from December 2018, the first full month of MMJ sales in the state. Though the February total is relatively small versus other states, Oklahoma’s nascent industry is seen as trailblazing because of its lack of limits on business licenses and the fact doctors have wide latitude to recommend medical cannabis. Nick Thomas covers finance for Marijuana Business Magazine. Reach him at NickT@MJBizDaily.com . Money Matters | Nick Thomas