Banks are not hiding in cannabis!
I love that image. One because it's a vault and two because it shows the thought that somewhere on the planet someone felt it important to make this up. Banks are coming online all the time in the cannabis space. Yet do you have any idea why more companies are not banking legally in the cannabis space? They don't respond to the banks that are even in our space in a timely manner.
Imagine this - you are given the opportunity to win a lottery and offered a free ticket only if you fill out these forms and get them back to me before the end of the business day. Now imagine you have your cell phone ringing, the kids asking for more iphones, laundry and a host of other things to do while still keeping the lights on in your store? Well it happens. See even with banks coming on (Payzel has 5 in our program for loans) the companies who are actually winning are those that slow down and do the paperwork banks need. Recently we added a very large company that has done over 1 trillion in services to other industries. They said we have companies who need banking and we said great send them to us we will get them banked. Guess what happened? We took in 5 leads for people to meet banks and all 5 leads have not even bothered to get back to us. Why? For one reason or another banking although top of mind when they shut your account down seems to have fallen off the radar for these firms.
Why is this happening? With the advent of more and more systems that claim they can bank companies and then charge them outrageous fees to do so it only begs the question "When will this end?" Hopefully soon the federal government will cease it's illogical pursuit of cannabis as a drug and embrace the revenue potential it will yield for the entire US as well as the world. When we can export cannabis to other countries I will have a rather large smile on my face having been one of the guys in Asia wondering when they were coming to get me and put me in jail. Yes almost 20 years ago I was enjoying cannabis in Asia. Now the US is set on a path to legalize but will companies still falter in getting banking set up? YES things get in the way of your day but if you are really focused on getting an account you will not stop until you dot every "i" and cross every "T' at the bank.
A word of advice if you are being told you can have a custodial account or something other than a REAL bank account from some service provider - they are just that. A service provider who will charge you fees and not allow you to interact with the bank. Services where you can talk to the bankers who are protecting your funds are real banks. Just ask banks like Partners Federal Credit Union, North Bay Credit Union or First Federal in Florida. Great banks and all are very wide open to accepting cannabis companies. If you need more bank names or people in this space just ask! That is what we are here for.
We understand the need for transparent and compliant banking. Lets make something happen - now to talk about loans? That is another episode of Banking Cannabis 101. Stay tuned for more on that subject. For now - go out and build your business there are real banks right around the corner you just have to pursue them with vigor and get yourself set up to win.
Todd Kleperis - Chairman Emeritus NCIA Banking and Legal Committee - wrote the first white paper on legally banking cannabis cash. Founder of HARDCAR the first company to distribute cannabis and bring cash to the federal reserve in the US. Founder of Payzel the first online lending marketplace to get the banks to compete in cannabis.