Cannabis investing is on the cusp of becoming mainstream, but it’s not quite ready for prime-time. The Atlantic Magazine published a piece by Alex Halperin exploring the recent Merrill Lynch research piece on the cannabis industry, which was a real breakthrough in terms of the industry getting attention from an institutional investment firm.
Earlier this month Bank of America Merrill Lynch put out a research report on the marijuana industry’s prospects. Touted as the first such assessment by a major financial institution, the report is a milestone in a fast-growing sector that is hungry for mainstream recognition and the money that comes with it. But a close reading of the report makes clear that marijuana has a long way to go before it resembles a normal American industry.
The article points to the fragmentation of the industry as one big challenge to investing. Even when larger companies are involved, their exposure to the industry is insignificant. The bottom-line is that despite the attractiveness of the overall industry, so far, there isn’t much in the way of investment opportunities, at least in the public markets.
Read Alex Halperin’s “The Big Banks Are Starting to Look Hard at Marijuana”: http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/12/the-big-banks-are-starting-to-look-hard-at-marijuana/420969/
