Legal Tender is a coalition of experts, associations, and companies in the legal and regulated cannabis market advocating for equitable treatment by the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) and Federal Government.

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Supporting Associations:

Individuals.

George Smitherman - Cannabis Council of Canada
Dan Sutton - Tantalus Labs
Trina Fraser - Brazeau Seller Law
Deepak Anand - Materia Ventures
Barinder Rasode - Grow Tech Labs
Courtland Sandover-Sly - The BCICA
Ashley Chiu
Susan Chapelle - The Aligned Collective
David Purcell
Dave Brown - Industry Analyst
Patrick Moher - Ethical Image
Kieley Beaudry - Parkland Flower
David Hyde - Cannabis Global Consultants
Mark Spear - Wildfire Collective
John Prentice - Ample Organics
Lucas McCann - Canndelta Inc
Brittny Anderson - Cannabis Conservancy
Stephen Verbeek - Hello Cannabis
Ian Dyck
John Slaughter - High North
Cameron Bishop - Organigram
Gerald Proctor - Sundial Growers
Mark Hauk - Shelter
Sarah Seale - Cannabis Global Consultants
Dr. Danial Schecter - Canabo Medical Clinics
Michael Garbuz - High12 Brands
Vijay Sappani - Ela Capital

George Smitherman - Cannabis Council of Canada
Dan Sutton - Tantalus Labs
Trina Fraser - Brazeau Seller Law
Deepak Anand - Materia Ventures
Barinder Rasode - Grow Tech Labs
Courtland Sandover-Sly - The BCICA
Susan Chapelle - The Aligned Collective
Patrick Moher - Ethical Image
Kieley Beaudry - Parkland Flower
David Hyde - Cannabis Global Consultants
Mark Spear - Wildfire Collective
Caryma Sa'd - Lawyer
Mark Hauk - Shelter
Ashley Chiu
David Purcell

Alan Brochstein - New Cannabis Ventures
John Prentice - Ample Organics
Lucas McCann - Canndelta Inc
Brittny Anderson - Cannabis Conservancy
Stephen Verbeek - Hello Cannabis
John Slaughter - High North
Gerald Proctor - Sundial Growers
Sarah Seale - Cannabis Global Consultants
Dr. Danial Schecter - Canabo Medical Clinics
Michael Garbuz - High12 Brands
Paul Penderson - Nextleaf Solutions
Vijay Sappani - Ela Capital
Mika Unterman - Apical
Ian Dyck

The Problem at Hand.

The Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) still denies funding to 300+ Health Canada license holders, as well as numerous ancillary businesses, because they produce, process, distribute, or sell legal cannabis. The BDC still views Cannabis as a high-risk industry, despite the work done within to improve on compliance, social responsibility, and economic contributions. This systemic problem is not newfound but recently came into focus as the COVID-19 crisis amplifies the potentially dire impact.

It’s not just cultivators that are affected, this policy affects all plant-touching business such as Import/Export, Distribution, Packaging, Production, Cultivation, Extraction, Genetics, and Retail.

The Positive Context.

The positive impact of legalizing the industry has been quite evident since October 17th, 2018:

Economic Impact.

GDP Contribution

Contributed $7B to the GDP, and grew by 138% since legalization.

Tax Revenue

Generated $186M in tax revenue annually.

Job Growth

Added over 8,000 part and full-time jobs.

Community & CSR.

Community Support

Valens and other cannabis producers help fill the need for medical necessities amid COVID-19 shortages.

Youth Consumption

Teen consumption of cannabis reduced by 9.4% in the first year.

Life Quality

Improves quality of life for 400,000+ registered medical patients.

Giving What They Have

Donating medical gear to health care workers fighting COVID-19.

Essential Service

Cannabis is deemed an essential service by the province of Ontario, while cannabis retail continues across Canada.

Lead by Example

Superette donates one jar of food to the local food bank for every piece of cannabis packaging they recycle.

Innovation & Risk-Mitigation.

Modern Tracking

Detailed record keeping & seed-to-sale tracking across the industry.

Responsible Consumption

Keep cannabis away from youth while safely allowing adults to access it legally.

Product Innovation

Smoke-free cannabis formulations & delivery methods.

Opioid Replacement

The potential for cannabis to replace opioids for chronic pain patients.

Medical Research

Ongoing clinical, pre-clinical, and public health trials.

Crime Reduction

Protects public safety and provides relief to the criminal justice system.

Canada used Bill C-45 to legalize cannabis for two stated reasons: to keep cannabis out of the hands of children and youth, and combat the illicit market.

We ask that the Government of Canada keep these goals in mind when considering the reasonable needs of legal cannabis businesses.

The Solution.

Overall, we need the Government of Canada and the BDC to make sure legal cannabis businesses have access to stimulus funding, as well as equal access to banking opportunities. We see this happening through the implementation of the following:

Remove Ban on Cannabis

We ask that the BDC remove their sweeping ban on giving financial support to companies in the legal cannabis sector, as it does for most other sectors.



Financial Support

We ask that the BDC provide legal cannabis businesses with access to stimulus funding to the over 300 Health Canada license holders that produce, process, distribute, or sell legal cannabis that are affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Continued Support

We ask the Federal Government to ensure fair treatment of the legal cannabis industry by granting its participants equal opportunity access to tax benefit programs, credit facilities, loans, and everyday banking abilities.

Help the cannabis industry succeed in advocating for equitable treatment by the BDC and Federal Government.

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