January 12, 2019

Two Canadian cannabis investors – SOL Global Investments and LGC Capital – have made investments in separate European cannabis companies.

As European nations witness the benefits of marijuana legalization occurring in North America, momentum for legalization is building across the continent. Over the course of the next decade, the European cannabis market is expected to reach a value of €115.7 billion (US$132.7 billion) with medical cannabis accounting for nearly half of the market at €55.2  billion (US$63.3 billion), according to Prohibition Partners. And given these expectations, struggling European economies are turning to marijuana to create new industries, boost GDP, and to alleviate unemployment.

SOL Global

Toronto-based SOL Global Investments announced that it has invested €1.8 million (US$2 million) in Irish medical cannabis company Green Light Pharmaceuticals in exchange for a 25 percent stake in the business.

Additionally, SOL Global has acquired the option to acquire a 75 percent stake in a future GreenLight subsidiary that successfully secures a license for cultivation in Ireland or Northern Ireland for an aggregate exercise price of approximately €1 million (US$1.15 million).

Founded in Dublin, Ireland, in 2014, GreenLight is a vertically-integrated cannabis company with cultivation operations, a seed genetics program, and a clinical R&D operation led by Dr. James Linden. The company’s R&D initiatives include participation with 13 international academic institutes and the development of dedicated GreenLight laboratories situated in various universities.

Currently the company controls its proprietary “GreenLight Food Supplements” subsidiary which provides products in Ireland and the UK. Further development is being undertaken in Spain, France, Russia, Poland, and the U.S.

“As society continues to delve into the future of using cannabis medicinally, GreenLight plans to be instrumental in forming industry-leading solutions and therapies,” Said Brady Cobb, CEO of SOL Global.

Since 2014, GreenLight’s R&D program has focused on addressing some of the foremost pharmaceutical challenges, including anti-rheumatics, oncology, immunosuppressants, and bronchodilators, and has so secured distribution agreements with 1,000 pharmacies across Ireland and the UK.

“In 2019 we expect to see the roll out of full medicinal cannabis markets in Ireland and the UK. GreenLight is primed to perform well in these developing markets with our top quality and affordable plant medicines,” said GreenLight CEO James Linden. “The expansion of our food supplements range, and the research and development of our pharmaceutical products will enable GreenLight to have a greater profile on the international scene as a major player in medical cannabis.”

LGC Capital

TSX-listed LGC Capital has closed on a US$4 million investment in Swiss cannabis producer Viridi Unit SA (Viridi). In exchange, LGC has acquired a 30 percent equity stake in the company plus a 5 percent royalty on Viridi’s net sales over the next 10 years.

“The LGC team and I are very pleased with the closing of our strategic investment in Viridi. With partners like Viridi in Switzerland, we at LGC are solidifying our presence in the legal European cannabis market which is estimated to grow upwards of $98 billion by 2025 according to a recent BMO report,” said John McMullen, CEO of LGC Capital.

As a cannabis producer, processor, and distributor, Viridi harvested and processed 20,000 plants grown at its 65,000 square-foot Geneva cultivation facility in October 2018. Using a proprietary breeding system, Viridi produces high-quality, high-CBD strains and seeds that comply with Swiss regulations of less than 1 percent THC and European Union regulations of  less than 0.02 percent THC. Through its harvest, Viridi’s work yielded 2,700 kilograms of high-CBD dried cannabis flowers which will be used as inputs for products that the company distributes under its ØNΞ Premium Cannabis brand to its 500 retail locations across Switzerland.

“As the cannabis market grows rapidly inside Switzerland and the European Union, Viridi and its ØNΞ Premium Cannabis are building a strong name as a leading provider of high quality, high CBD, compliant cannabis products in Europe,” said McMullen.

-Lynda Kiernan