LeafLink, a major U.S. cannabis wholesale platform, announced its acquisition Wednesday of Dama Financial's banking division in a move aimed to address a major challenge faced by cannabis operators: the lack of access to secure and compliant financial services.

LeafLink’s platform provides various services for cannabis brands and retailers, including tools for order and category management, payments, data analytics and advertising.

Due to its strong performance, LeafLink recently increased its Series D fundraising round from $100 million to $125 million. Investors in this round include CPMG, Nosara, L2 Ventures, Thrive Capital and Tiger Global.

See Also: Boosting Cannabis Retail Growth With Data: LeafLink And CASA Unite To Deliver Profit-Driving Analytics

A Step Toward Integrated Financial Solutions

"LeafLink provides customers with integrated tech solutions that make it easier to run their businesses," said Artie Minson, CEO of LeafLink.

"Over the last year, we’ve released several products that will significantly improve our customers' operating performance and profitability. After witnessing firsthand the negative impact the federal prohibition has had on operators' access to traditional banks, we are thrilled to add banking to LeafLink's product suite.”

Patrick O'Boyle, CEO of GrowFlow, which is now part of Dama Financial, highlighted the industry’s need for integrated solutions.

"The cannabis industry is in need of integrated solutions at scale and this deal is a great example of the benefits it will bring to our industry. LeafLink is in a strong position to take our established banking solution and build on it even further, offering the industry a unified financial services experience,” O´Boyle said.

“The product lines not included in this acquisition will rebrand to GrowFlow, remaining focused on enhancing and growing our retail and wholesale product lines to service the cannabis industry."

Federal Prohibition: No Banking For The Cannabis Industry

Fed prohibition has limited cannabis operators' access to traditional banking services, often leaving them with minimal features, cumbersome processes and high operating costs. Credit unions and small state-chartered banks, which service the remainder of the industry, face similar limitations.

Dama Financial, with over $3 billion in processed transactions, serves more than half of the cannabis-legal states in the U.S. It has worked closely with leading U.S. sponsor banks to develop financial solutions for cash-intensive industries, particularly cannabis.

Furthermore, Dama Financial's offerings include checking accounts, payment processing, cash pickup services, and on-site smart safes, while ensuring compliance with current banking and cannabis regulations.

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