Cannabis business owners looking to secure investment capital have an opportunity to learn from leaders at cannabis-focused investment firms at Cannabis Conference 2019, taking place April 1-3 at the Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Nev.
The “Securing Investment Capital and Managing Investment Relations” session begins at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, April 3 and features insight from Colin Kelley, co-founder and vice president of Haze.Delivery; Michael Boniello, managing director of Poseidon Asset Management; and Brian Franco, founder and managing partner of Meritage Partners, Inc.
The trio will teach cannabis operators how to find and appeal to the right investors for their business, negotiate equitable deals and navigate the challenges of investor expectations. They will also provide “on the ground” realities during both the start-up and expansion phases.
Kelley is a member of the board of governors for LeafLine Labs, a licensed producer and distributor of medical cannabis in Minnesota. Kelley previously served as the CFO and COO of LeafLine Labs, and has since become the co-founder and president of Haze.Delivery, a compliance-based medical cannabis delivery platform. He also consults to executive teams in the cannabis and ancillary product markets.
Boniello amassed an 18-year career across many areas of traditional finance, spending the past five as a cannabis investor and consultant. Poseidon is one of the longest running, 100-percent cannabis focused investment firms in the industry, and in his current role, Boniello concentrates on raising capital for companies which have reached their Series A and higher rounds of funding. The Poseidon team has focused on a diversified strategy covering a range of company stages and industry subsectors across the capital spectrum. The company oversees one of the longest running dedicated cannabis investment funds, Demeter Capital Group LP, with over $100 million assets under management, and recently launched its second fund, Demeter Capital Group II LP.
Franco brings over a decade of experience in mergers and acquisitions and business financing to Meritage Partners. He has sold over 80 percent of the companies he has exclusively represented through Meritage, and his M&A experience has contributed to his understanding of transaction structure, strategic placement of buyers and sellers, and the attainment of maximum market value for his clients.
Cannabis Conference 2019, produced by the award-winning publications Cannabis Business Times and Cannabis Dispensary, is in its third year, and has expanded upon the success of previous events’ cultivation education to include for the first time a dispensary track for retail businesses and employees. In addition to its in-depth educational programming on cannabis cultivation and retail operations, the event features a sold-out expo floor that spans 70,000 square feet and showcases more than 125 technology and solutions providers that serve growers and dispensaries.