Editor's Note: This article isn't focused on cannabis, but its implications are not lost on the legalized marijuana industry. As the Fortune article notes, "the government has been leaning on other private enterprises, like banks, to help it do police work for decades. But the Feds have only increased their efforts to enlist financial institutions to fight the international drug trade." (Banks are required to do due diligence on their customers and file Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs).)
As long as marijuana remains a Schedule 1 substance under the Controlled Substances Act–making it federally illegal–the legalized marijuana industry will continue to face significant hurdles, not the least of which is limited access to banking services and the inability to file for business tax deductions as other, non-marijuana-related businesses do.Â
We're awaiting updates on the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) Guidelines (part 2), which we hear is on its way. FinCEN issued its initial guidance for banks seeking to provide services to legal marijuana businesses in February. We're also awaiting updates on the–we'd like to think impending–removal of cannabis from the DEA's Schedule 1 classification. In June, Bloomberg reported, "The Food and Drug Administration is conducting an analysis at the Drug Enforcement Administration’s request on whether the U.S. should downgrade the classification of marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug, said Douglas Throckmorton, Deputy Director for Regulatory Programs at the FDA, at a congressional hearing." No time frame was specified for expecting a decision.Â
The federal government has increased pressure on the private sector to fight the war on drugs, just as public support for the effort has reached a low.
It’s no surprise that the FBI takedown of the online drug market Silk Road was one of the most captivating stories of 2013.
The federal government’s complaintagainst the alleged Silk Road mastermind Ross Ulbricht had all the necessary ingredients for the making of a thrilling techno-drama. It accused Ulbricht, a talented Silicon Valley computer engineer, of using tools like bitcoin and the Tor network to help create an online marketplace called Silk Road, where users could buy and sell (mostly drug-related) contraband, safe from the prying eyes of law enforcement.
Silk Road started out as essentially an exercise in civil disobedience, where libertarians could flout laws against crimes like drug trafficking.
