Small banks are gaining confidence Cannabis companies may not be able to work with the JPMorgan Chases and Citigroups of the world anytime soon, but that hasn’t stopped small banks from flooding into the space. On the surface, it would seem that the industry’s prospects for being able to bank like normal companies have taken a hit. U.S. Representative Ed Perlmutter of Colorado, the biggest supporter of legislation that would liberalize rules for cannabis banking, just announced his retirement. The SAFE Banking Act he backed stalled late last year. Meanwhile, Visa Inc. sent a memo to banks saying that so-called cashless ATMs — a workaround used by some dispensaries to avoid dealing in cash — weren’t copacetic. But those who specialize in helping financial institutions work with cannabis companies say that may all be moot: The number of credit unions and state-chartered banks venturing into the industry has been quietly accelerating. “In the early days, no banks were willing to do this,” said Peter Su, a senior vice president at Green Check Verified, which offers software to banks that help them deal with the added regulatory burdens of working in cannabis.
420 Intel – Marijuana Industry News, 01/17/2022 19:00:00