Legal Cannabis Market's Growth Accelerates With Use of E-Commerce Platforms

NEW YORK, December 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

FinancialBuzz.com News Commentary  

Cannabis is quickly growing in prominence around the globe due to more and more countries exploring opportunities within the industry. Additionally, most countries are leaning towards cannabis for medical applications to treat conditions such as cancer, chronic pain and multiple sclerosis. Regardless, there is still a large demand for recreational cannabis, especially within the North American region. The emerging industry has prompted many companies to invest into the market and the investments are primarily being used to further accelerate the growth of businesses as well as conduct research. According to data compiled by Zion Market Research, the legal cannabis market was valued at USD 16.71 Billion in 2017 and is expected to grow to USD 62.96 Billion by 2024. Additionally, the market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 21% during the forecast period. The market will continue to hurtle forward as more countries look into using cannabis for either recreational or medicinal purposes. GreenBox Pos LLC (OTC: GRBX), Global Payout, Inc. (OTC: GOHE), Aurora Cannabis Inc. (NYSE: ACB), The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd. (OTC: TGODF), iAnthus Capital Holdings, Inc. (OTC: ITHUF)

The cannabis industry has transformed remarkably in recent years, causing a large influx of users. According to a survey conducted by Yahoo News and Marist College, nearly 55 million Americans used cannabis in 2017, which increased drastically from 33 million users in 2016. In order to meet growing demand, cannabis companies have launched more brick and mortar locations and now technology is becoming heavily integrated into the industry as well. Cannabis-based products are being introduced to e-commerce platforms, further accelerating growth. However, because certain cannabis products remain illegal at the federal level, it is difficult for merchants to accept credit or debit card payments. The restrictions imposed on financial institutions have caused businesses to develop payment solutions. "Few banks or credit unions are openly handling marijuana-related business because of the compliance burden and other risks, but demand for financial services is rising as more states legalize pot. So far 334 banks and 107 credit unions were documented participants in the cannabis industry at the end of June 2018, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), but the numbers are gradually rising," said Michael Moeser, Senior Analyst at PaymentsSource, and Kate Fitzgerald, Senior Editor at PaymentsSource.

GreenBox Pos LLC (OTC: GRBX) on June 5^th, 2018, Company announced joint news, that, "MoneyTrac Technology, Inc. ("MTRAC", the "Company"), of which Global is a significant shareholder (currently 18% ownership), announced today that they have structured a reverse triangular merger agreement (the "Agreement") with Global whereby MTRAC will be the post-merger operating entity.

The last year and a half has proven to be both game changing and exceptionally productive for MoneyTrac Technology. Initially launched in 2015 as a subsidiary to Global, the goal of this subsidiary was to tackle the payment processing challenges faced by businesses operating in a variety of "high-cost" and "high-risk" industries, and with the appointment of Ms. Vanessa Luna in early 2017 as MTRAC's COO, the Company began to gain significant traction by way of a number of strategic partnerships and acquisitions it executed.

The beginning of 2018 would see Ms. Luna elevate to the position of CEO of MoneyTrac, and shortly thereafter the Company achieved its most significant milestone to-date by securing an exclusive software licensing agreement with GreenBox Pos, LLC (OTCQB:GRBX). This technology would serve as the catalyst for the co-development of the revolutionary closed-loop blockchain technology-supported MTRAC payment solution, which the Company intends to be the "Key to Cashless™" for a multitude of cash-burdened businesses.  Now poised, in managements' opinion, more effectively than ever before to emerge as the premier payment processing solution for "high-risk" and "high-cost" industries, the Company firmly believes that the opportunity to be placed on a public platform by way of this reverse triangular merger with Global could open the doors to a variety of new resources that can be leveraged to maximize the Company's short and long-term growth strategies.

Said MTRAC CEO, Vanessa Luna: "The completion of this reverse triangular merger with Global Payout marks the culmination of the hard work and dedication my team and I have put forth on behalf of MoneyTrac in the past several months. We have come to a point where we are truly ready to take on the cash problem with our MTRAC payment solution. And while we have remained strategically meticulous in our launch and expansion efforts thus far, we recognize how important a public platform can be in helping MoneyTrac evolve into the financial technology powerhouse we believe it will become. We are grateful to the team at Global Payout for their ongoing and continued support throughout the years which has culminated in this merger. We fully intend to use this incredible opportunity to establish MTRAC as the premier cashless solution for the multi-billion-dollar cannabis industry and will remain motivated to create a cashless society for other high-cost and high-risk market sectors through our extraordinary blockchain technology solutions."

Said Global Payout CEO, James Hancock: "Global Payout has always been a major supporter of MoneyTrac, so I am elated over the completion of this reverse triangular merger as I recognized the significant benefit it could have in facilitating their continued growth and expansion. Over the last several months, Global's shareholders have witnessed the evolution of MTRAC, and I am excited for them to now be a part of this entirely new era of Global Payout that I believe will become the most compelling part of our success story."

Global Payout, Inc. (OTC: GOHE), since the Company's inception in 2009, has been a leading provider of comprehensive and customized prepaid payment solutions for domestic and international organizations distributing money worldwide. Global Payout Inc. recently announced that MoneyTrac Technology, Inc., of which Global is a significant shareholder (currently 18% ownership), announced recently that they have structured a reverse triangular merger agreement with Global whereby MTRAC will be the post-merger operating entity. The last year and a half have proven to be both game changing and exceptionally productive for MoneyTrac Technology. Initially launched in 2015 as a subsidiary to Global, the goal of this subsidiary was to tackle the payment processing challenges faced by businesses operating in a variety of "high-cost" and "high-risk" industries, and with the appointment of Ms. Vanessa Luna in early 2017 as MTRAC's Chief Operating Officer, the Company began to gain significant traction by way of a number of strategic partnerships and acquisitions it executed. Said Global Payout Chief Executive Officer, James Hancock: "Global Payout has always been a major supporter of MoneyTrac, so I am elated over the completion of this reverse triangular merger as I recognized the significant benefit it could have in facilitating their continued growth and expansion. Over the last several months, Global's shareholders have witnessed the evolution of MTRAC, and I am excited for them to now be a part of this entirely new era of Global Payout that I believe will become the most compelling part of our success story."

Aurora Cannabis Inc. (NYSE: ACB), headquartered in Edmonton, Alberta, with funded capacity in excess of 430,000 kg per year and sales and operations in 14 countries across five continents, is one of the world's largest and leading cannabis companies. Aurora Cannabis Inc. recently announced that it has reached an agreement with Shopify Inc., one of the world's leading multi-channel, online commerce companies, to leverage the Shopify platform as Aurora's ecommerce engine for medical and recreational cannabis distribution globally. Working closely with Aurora Cannabis' industry-leading software engineering team, Shopify will assist in transitioning Aurora's current ecommerce site to a new, Shopify-developed platform, improving the customer experience for Aurora's current medical and future adult consumer use customers. One of the key benefits of the Shopify platform is its rapid and seamless scalability as Aurora executes on its domestic and international expansion strategy. "Selecting Shopify allows Aurora to bring a world-class ecommerce solution to our patients and future adult consumer use customers," said Darryl Vleeming, Chief Investment Officer of Aurora Cannabis Inc. "Shopify's unique, industry leading platform provides a safe, secure and flexible ecommerce site that we can build on as we execute our global growth initiatives and enter new markets."

The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd. (OTCQX: TGODF) is a research & development company licensed under the Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations to cultivate medical cannabis. The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd. recently announced that it has selected Shopify Inc. to build an innovative ecommerce platform for the delivery of medical and future adult-use organic cannabis world-wide. The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd. (TGOD) is a research & development company licensed under the Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations to cultivate medical cannabis in Canada. TGOD is developing large scale production, global distribution channels and a premium brand to become the leading supplier of organic cannabis worldwide. TGOD is committed to building a powerful, scalable ecommerce solution, and is proud to implement Shopify's innovative ecommerce platform. "We are pleased to announce this agreement with ecommerce giant Shopify," said Csaba Reider, President of TGOD. "We see tremendous value in this relationship and Shopify will play an instrumental role in our ability to rapidly scale and provide our premium organic cannabis to global markets."

iAnthus Capital Holdings, Inc. (OTCQX: ITHUF) owns and operates best-in-class licensed cannabis cultivation, processing and dispensary facilities throughout the United States, providing investors diversified exposure to the U.S. regulated cannabis industry. iAnthus Capital Holdings, Inc., and MPX Bioceutical Corporation recently announced that both companies have signed an arrangement agreement pursuant to which iAnthus will combine with MPX in an all-stock transaction with offered equity consideration to MPX shareholders valued at USD 835 Million before giving effect to MPX International and assuming all of MPX's dilutive securities are exercised prior to the completion of the transaction. The Agreement represents the first public to public merger transaction in U.S. cannabis history. "This is a watershed moment for iAnthus, as we nearly double the size of our national footprint in the United States. iAnthus will be uniquely positioned for success on the U.S. East Coast, while solidifying our cultivation and retail presence with the additions of California, Nevada, Maryland and Arizona," said Hadley Ford, Chief Executive Officer of iAnthus. "Since its inception, iAnthus has been strategically focused on building scale, and this announcement crystallizes our positioning as one of the largest multi-state operators in North America."

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