Jacob Redmond
Well-Known Member
Should marijuana become legal in Ohio, businesses in the new industry would have trouble enough finding any banks willing to work with them.
But even if they do find a banking partner, they can expect some exorbitant fees.
Sources told American Banker that in states where pot is legal for recreational or medical uses, banks are charging as much as $3,000 a month for basic checking accounts, compared with about $50 a month that a more-proven and less-controversial small business might pay. The hefty costs come as financial services companies navigate a burdensome regulatory environment in which the drug remains illegal on the federal level.
And, of course, a scarcity of banks willing to venture into the market has driven up prices.
"The reality is that it's extremely difficult to get a bank account in this industry, so if you do find a bank, you are highly incentivized to play by whatever rules they set for you," Taylor West, deputy director of the National Cannabis Association, told the trade journal. Additional fees are tacked on for other services such as audits and for picking up deposits in armored trucks, sources told American Banker. About 100 banks are serving the market nationally, one regulator said last year, including only about eight in Colorado, the first state to legalize marijuana for recreational use in 2014.
Several pro-marijuana groups have put forth legalization proposals in Ohio, including ResponsibleOhio, which hopes to get its proposal on the November ballot.
News Moderator: Jacob Redmond 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: $3K-a-month checking accounts? Marijuana businesses paying up - Columbus - Columbus Business First
Author: Evan Weese
Contact: Contact Us - Columbus - Columbus Business First
Photo Credit: Matthew Staver/Bloomberg
Website: Business News - The Business Journals
But even if they do find a banking partner, they can expect some exorbitant fees.
Sources told American Banker that in states where pot is legal for recreational or medical uses, banks are charging as much as $3,000 a month for basic checking accounts, compared with about $50 a month that a more-proven and less-controversial small business might pay. The hefty costs come as financial services companies navigate a burdensome regulatory environment in which the drug remains illegal on the federal level.
And, of course, a scarcity of banks willing to venture into the market has driven up prices.
"The reality is that it's extremely difficult to get a bank account in this industry, so if you do find a bank, you are highly incentivized to play by whatever rules they set for you," Taylor West, deputy director of the National Cannabis Association, told the trade journal. Additional fees are tacked on for other services such as audits and for picking up deposits in armored trucks, sources told American Banker. About 100 banks are serving the market nationally, one regulator said last year, including only about eight in Colorado, the first state to legalize marijuana for recreational use in 2014.
Several pro-marijuana groups have put forth legalization proposals in Ohio, including ResponsibleOhio, which hopes to get its proposal on the November ballot.
News Moderator: Jacob Redmond 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: $3K-a-month checking accounts? Marijuana businesses paying up - Columbus - Columbus Business First
Author: Evan Weese
Contact: Contact Us - Columbus - Columbus Business First
Photo Credit: Matthew Staver/Bloomberg
Website: Business News - The Business Journals
