Staff
Not only do cannabis companies face banking challenges, but the employees also face the stigma of the big green leaf. Banks are notoriously conservative when it comes to cannabis and that hurts employees who just want a car loan or a mortgage. The founders of cannabis logistics company Hardcar, saw first hand the struggles with banking and stepped up with a solution.
This new fintech company PAYZEL said it has secured banks to do home loans and other financial services for employees of cannabis companies. The company said that by shifting banks interest from just mortgages on buildings, which Payzel already does, to add homes was a natural evolution. The company arrived at this solution based on market demand from partners across the United States.
Payzel founder Todd Kleparis said, “Companies had called us a number of times telling us that employees just couldn’t get a loan at the banks they were using. Wanting to help, we went to our already established network of banks and offered up a way to expedite the loan process and have cannabis employees be able to get car loans and home loans all in one place. So now a company can get access to legal banking plus help to facilitate their employee’s needs as well. Most banks will not do home loans or offer other financial services but fortunately, we have forged fantastic relationships with many banks over the past four years. This is a major milestone for Payzel in its infancy and a major win for the cannabis space as a whole.”
With capital becoming so tight these days, cannabis companies may be drawn to a provider that is willing to make loans not only to the businesses, but also to employees. Since the founders have been involved with the cannabis industry for some time in California, they do not stigma issues and recognize the industry’s problems. High operational costs that currently exist within the industry, including licensing and banking fees, drove the creation of Payzel – with a tag line “Forged out of Frustration”.
“With this new expansion of offerings, we believe we are still the one and only financial services platform with real banks accepting real cannabis companies without insane fees,” added Kleparis. “Most other services offering to get cannabis companies to banks are either some sort of wacky custodial account which you don’t even own or a looney scheme to get people paying a fee. Payzel does none of that. We are the Trip Advisor and Lending Tree of Cannabis.”
Payzel says its accounts are insurance-backed and that credit card services will be coming soon.
