It was a rough week for some cannabis companies. News that Visa (NYSE: V) could begin cracking down on the way many cannabis customers use their debit cards to make a purchase and the change could have a devastating effect on the cannabis industry. The company sent out a memo warning that cashless ATM transactions were prohibited.
Cannabis leaders had a tough week as well.
Charlotte’s Web made sweeping changes in its C-suite. CEO Deanie Elsner was out of a job and a former Bacardi executive Jacques Tortoroli was named the new CEO. Jared Stanley, Charlotte’s Web Co-founder and Chief Cultivation Officer, will assume an expanded role as Chief Cultivation and Innovation Office and the CFO has seen his duties expanded.
Turning Point Brands also named a new CEO Yavor Efremov replacing the Company’s current CEO, Larry Wexler.
Hexo Corp. (TSX: HEXO; NASDAQ: HEXO) reported its revenue rising 29% sequentially to $50.2 million. Hexo also reported a total net loss of $116 million and warned that it was a going concern saying that “existing funds on hand, when combined with operational cash flow, would not be sufficient to fund the potential Senior Secured Convertible Note redemption payments.
Fire & Flower Holdings Corp. (TSX: FAF) (OTCQX: FFLWD) announced its revenue rising 37% to $45.4 million. One cautionary note was that Fire & Flower reported that same-store sales decreased 27% for fifty-four (54) stores in operation during the quarter due to increased competition as the surge in newly licensed retail cannabis stores continues across Canada.
Also this week, companies seemed to wrap up some debt issues. Glass House Brands was approved for a $100 million debt deal and Curaleaf received commitments for a private placement of 8.0% Senior Secured Notes due 2026 for aggregate gross proceeds of $425 million. It’s the largest single debt financing of any publicly-traded US cannabis company in history and at a rate that is also one of the lowest seen within the industry.
And that’s it for this week. This will be the last marijuana moment video for 2021. Have a happy holiday everyone and we’ll see you in 2022.