CONCERNS UP OVER WEED WHALES’ HEALTH

Well documented in this space is that every cannabis company — legal and not — experiences peaks and valleys unlike those of other competitors in an emerging American market. Upheaval is the norm.

However, when a bombshell like last week’s revelation that Silicon Valley darling Eaze is cash-strapped gets followed by MedMen’s disclosure that it’s trying to pay its bills in stock, both the underground and above-board parts of the weed ecosystem take note.
TechCrunch, Marketwatch

• MedMen CEO Adam Bierman also confirmed with Green Market Report’s Deborah Borchardt that his company has been late paying bills because “at the end of last year we entered into a restructuring in the business.”
• Bierman described the company’s layoffs as a painful part of “exiting the hyper-growth stage of the business, and getting into sustainability.”
• Backed by about $166 million in funding and on the heels of a $15 million bridge investment, Eaze is after a $35 million Series D funding round. The company’s road ahead is complicated by no longer being able to take credit cards. The app can only process payments with a debit card or an automated clearing house network.

Quick Hits

1. Next month the federal Food and Drug Administration will begin registering veterans for the first government-approved trial studies of weed and its impact on PTSD. Vets like Oakland’s Roberto Pickering would benefit.
   Vice
2. Falcon International has requested a $50M break-up fee from MSO Harvest asking for a cash payment as part of a move to dismiss the complaint that Arizona company filed earlier this month. In its legal action, Harvest accused Falcon International of operating illegally.
   MJ Biz Daily