Cresco Labs (OTC: CRLBF) is buying New York-based Columbia Care (OTC: CCHWF) in a $2 billion deal that will make it the largest marijuana company in the U.S. The all-stock purchase would give Cresco a presence in new recreational-marijuana markets, such as New Jersey and Virginia. It’s the largest merger in the marijuana business since Trulieve, based in Quincy, Fla., bought Harvest Health & Recreation for $2.1 billion last year. The deal is the biggest involving a Chicago-based marijuana company since Grassroots was bought by Curaleaf, headquartered in Wakefield, Mass., for $715 million in 2020. The acquisition reinforces Chicago’s place at the center of the legal marijuana industry. Cresco is one of three large publicly traded cannabis companies headquartered in Chicago, along with Green Thumb Industries and Verano Holdings.
Tamanie Pitts, Green Market Report, 03/23/2022 08:26:00