National companies moving to take over Maryland marijuana businesses, despite state law

National cannabis companies eager to expand their share of the growing U.S. medical marijuana industry are poised to acquire companies with Maryland licenses despite a state rule that limits such consolidation and a new law barring any ownership changes for another year.

A Baltimore Sun investigation has found that several out-of-state firms have told investors they are moving ahead with deals to take over Maryland marijuana companies by the end of this year.

For instance, Massachusetts-based Curaleaf, which has two of its own licenses in Maryland, has offered $30 million to acquire a small Frederick County company authorized to grow, process and sell cannabis.

Other large, national companies — MedMen, MPX and GTI — also have pending deals for Maryland firms. Their plans are raising concerns that companies are trying to monopolize the Maryland market.

Read more: https://www.capitalgazette.com/news/government/bs-md-cannabis-consolidation-20181112-story.html