InfoBytes Blog
Colorado announces roadmap to cannabis banking
On February 3, the Colorado governor announced plans to create a regulatory landscape to provide guidance and clarity for state-chartered financial services industries that serve, or wish serve, legal cannabis-related businesses. The Roadmap to Cannabis Banking & Financial Services—primarily driven by the state’s Division of Banking and the Division of Financial Services—is intended to increase the number of financial service providers in the state who serve cannabis-related businesses and cultivate opportunities for cannabis-related businesses that currently do not have access to banking services. According to the announcement, the roadmap outlines seven primary areas of focus, which include “providing clear regulatory guidance, encouraging new and emerging technologies in the banking and financial services space, reducing barriers while upholding consumer protection guardrails, and demonstrating state support for financial businesses wishing to explore cannabis banking.” The press announcement noted that the governor was joined by the lead sponsor of the federal SAFE Banking Act (H.R. 1595), which, as previously covered by InfoBytes, passed the House last September and currently awaits action in the Senate.