NEW YORK—More financial institutions are starting to work with marijuana businesses.
Though financial institutions remain skittish because cannabis is classified illegal at the federal level, 2017 did see double-digit growth in terms of banks and credit unions accepting marijuana companies into the fold, according to a Forbes study.
The Forbes report found that there are more than 400 financial institutions nationally that are accepting cannabis business accounts. And while that is a relatively small number, it represents a 198% increase over the first nine months of 2017.
“Last January, 340 financial services providers were banking marijuana businesses,” wrote Forbes’ Tom Angell, referring to January of 2017. “That number rose to 400 by the end of September, according to a report released late last month by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.”
“The new federal data shows that overall there has been a steady increase in the number of banks and credit unions willing to open accounts for marijuana-related businesses, even as [Attorney General, Jeff] Sessions has hinted that a cannabis crackdown could be in the works,” Angell said.
As CUToday.info reported, Sessions this month rescinded a number of policies that had allowed legalized marijuana to flourish, including the so-called “Cole Memo.” Credit unions and other financial institutions serving the cannabis industry have been following the Cole Memo, written by then Deputy Attorney General James M. Cole, which had clarified some of the uncertainty about how the federal government would respond as states began allowing sales for recreational and medical purposes.