The evolving regulatory landscape for marijuana-related businesses poses unique compliance challenges for firms in the securities industry. The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) continues to enforce its 2014...more
For financial institutions who engage in marijuana-related banking services, the primary compliance challenge remains the disconnect between federal and state law, as it is still illegal to manufacture, distribute, or...more
On September 25, 2019, the US House of Representatives ("House") passed, by a vote of 321 to 103, the Secure and Fair Enforcement Banking Act ("SAFE Banking Act"), bipartisan legislation designed to secure and regulate...more
The myriad—and conflicting—state, federal and international laws governing the burgeoning marijuana industry have created a complicated legal landscape for financial institutions. In the United States, most states have...more
ON OCTOBER 2, 2012, kidnappers robbed and abducted a marijuana dispensary owner from his Newport Beach home. They then drove him to the Mojave Desert where they tortured him and demanded that he reveal where he had buried his...more
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”), a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, issued guidance on February 14, 2014 (the “Cannabis Guidance”), to clarify Bank Secrecy Act expectations for financial...more
The Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has released updated quarterly statistics showing a continuing increase in the number of depository institutions that actively bank U.S. marijuana...more
Since 1996, when California became the first state to legalize marijuana (at the time, for medicinal purposes only), 28 additional states and the District of Columbia have legalized marijuana to some extent. Public support...more
Attorney General Sessions Announces Rescission of Obama Administration Policies on Marijuana Enforcement; Financial Institutions Lose Grounds to Permit Financial Transactions with Marijuana Businesses....more
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCen”) issued a Marijuana Related Business update in June with data from the first quarter of 2017. FinCen reports that the number of depository institutions that are actively...more
Even though as part of his confirmation hearings Attorney General Sessions informally indicated that enforcement of the federal criminal laws for marijuana businesses would not be a priority, this last week the Trump...more