The financial industry will need more than a few signals from the White House that it's safe to
bank legal marijuana businesses.
Not exact matches
Billions of dollars are expected to flow through California's legitimate
marijuana industry next year when recreational pot becomes
legal, but most of those businesses won't be able to use
banks.
Federal law all but requires
legal marijuana to operate strictly in cash, while in Canada
banks are helping that nation's cannabis industry boom.
(Last month a federal bill was introduced that would shield
banks from potential liability for serving
legal marijuana businesses.)
The federal government issued guidelines in February 2014 for states where
marijuana is
legal, including
banking regulations, but most
banks seem unwilling to take advantage of them.
Should federal tolerance for
legal marijuana one day end,
bank accounts full of
marijuana profits may be seized, he said.
«Currently, under federal
banking laws, many
legal, regulated legitimate
marijuana businesses — operating legally according to state law — are prevented from maintaining
bank accounts and accessing financial products like any other business, such as accepting credit cards, depositing revenues or writing checks to meet payroll or pay taxes,» Perlmutter said.
The U.S. Justice Department's decision to turn a blind eye to the enforcement of federal
marijuana laws in states that authorize medical or even recreational use of the drug eventually may make it easier to use credit cards for such transactions, but a
banking ban on
legal pot sellers remains intact for now.
Rob Rowe, a lawyer with the American Bankers Association, said on Wednesday that while the «industry certainly appreciates any additional guidance on the ability to
bank marijuana dispensaries in states where use is
legal, it really doesn't change the fundamental prohibition.»
Also
marijuana sales (where
legal for medical or personal use) is usually strictly cash (perhaps BitCoin is accepted) because
banks won't allow accounts or CC services.
The federal government on Friday issued guidelines for
banks seeking to do business with the
legal marijuana industry, stopping short of a blanket immunity for them, but strongly indicating that prosecutions for such crimes as money laundering would be unlikely.
NPR's Yuki Noguchi reports that the Department of Justice and Treasury Department on Friday sought to «clarify rules for
banks trying to navigate the murky
legal waters of the
marijuana business.
Last Friday, the federal government released guidelines for
banks to conduct business with the $ 1.5 - billion - a-year
legal marijuana industry.
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Businesses dealing with cryptocurrency and
legal marijuana have had accounts closed and been refused
banking services pursuant to a practice labeled «pre-risking» by
bank executives.
PotCoin aims to provide an ultra-secure digital cryptocurrency, network and
banking solution for the
legal marijuana industry.
Seven states so far have legalized cannabis for recreational use and medical
marijuana is
legal in 21 other states, but federally - funded
banks can not serve the needs of cannabis - related businesses, because it is still an illegal drug under federal law.
When MBank announced in January that they would accept accounts from
marijuana - industry customers, it briefly seemed as though the
banking problems for the newly
legal industry in Colorado might finally have a solution.
Despite memos issued by the Federal Treasury and Justice Departments, there continues to be controversy and disagreements within the
banking industry over whether or not
banks can accept money or make loans to participants in
legal marijuana businesses.