Debra Borchardt
Jushi Holdings Inc. began trading on the NEO Exchange on Monday, June 10 under the symbol (NEO:JUSH). The company is fairly new and is known for its recently launched a full spectrum CBD – hemp-derived product line called Mend. The company has plans to build out a significantly large hemp processing facility, Sound Wellness, a Jushi subsidiary to execute on the hemp opportunity.
“Listing on the NEO provides Jushi a solid foundation to build on its current growth trajectory as well as access new shareholders through the capital markets as a public company,” said Jushi CEO and Chairman, Jim Cacioppo. “At the same time, this does not affect Jushi’s disciplined focus on optimal capital allocation and deal structuring to maximize shareholder value.”
The listing follows the previously announced reverse takeover of a Canadian public company, Tanzania Minerals Corp. The public company was then renamed Jushi Holdings in connection with the reverse takeover and the listing on the NEO. Jushi raised approximately $68.2 million through a brokered and non-brokered private placement.
Jushi also recently acquired the trademarks The Clinic, The Clinic Consulting Services, The Bank and The Lab as well as, subject to certain limited exceptions, intellectual property derived from the operations of The Clinic Colorado. The Clinic Colorado is a Denver-based cannabis company known for its intellectual property concerning cannabis cultivation, processing, retail distribution, compliance, and safety in multiple states. Jushi paid $4,115,000 in cash and $5,885,000 worth of shares in relation to this asset purchase.
Earlier this year Jushi’s subsidiary Sound Wellness received approval of its industrial hemp-CBD processor license application as part of the New York State Industrial Hemp Agricultural Research program, administered by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets. By investing over $5 million in a high-tech hemp processing operation on the east side of Buffalo, NY, Jushi expects to create approximately 30-65 jobs in the area. The facility will house a state-of-the-art lab, allowing Sound Wellness to create advanced product formulations using CBD distillate, CBD isolate, and water-soluble CBD.
In California, Jushi is going after several retail locations with delivery capabilities and those with vertically integrated capacities but those retail licenses are only at the pending stage. There is a definitive agreement in Nevada to acquire a cultivation license, manufacturing license, industrial hemp license, and a distribution license (application pending) subject to regulatory approval.
