Cannabis stocks to buy now

Welcome to Insider Cannabis, our weekly newsletter where we're bringing you an inside look at the deals, trends, and personalities driving the multibillion-dollar global cannabis boom.

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Jefferies analyst Owen Bennett initiated coverage of seven US cannabis companies this week in a 278-page note. Jefferies expects cannabis to become legal federally by 2026 and projects that the US market will expand from about $17.2 billion last year to $64 billion in 2030.

But until cannabis is federally legal, we're keeping track of every state with an adult-use or medical program here in our interactive map. The latest additions include Virginia, New Mexico, and Connecticut, where recreational laws officially came into effect this summer.

And in case you missed it: on Wednesday, two giants in the psychedelics space - Rick Doblin of MAPS and Christian Angermayer of Atai - debated whether psychedelic decriminalization or legalization was good or bad for the medical developments in the space. We summarized their main argument for you, and you can also watch the full panel here.

What else?

It's rainy here in New York as Tropical Storm Elsa makes its way up the East Coast. So for those of you in the area, be sure to stay dry out there. My canna buddy Jeremy is off this week, enjoying the sun and celebrating his birthday! He'll be back next week.

Let's get to it.

- Yeji (@jesse_yeji)

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Here's what we wrote about this week:

The founder of the biggest psychedelics company says legalizing magic mushrooms risks creating a backlash that could undermine the industry

Atai founder Christian Angermayer said he personally supports decriminalization, but added that he believes legalization could "push back" the industry's progress. Rick Doblin of MAPS pushed back - saying that both decriminalization and legalization would work to destigmatize the compounds.

A top Wall Street analyst shares 5 cannabis stocks to buy now for a chance to double your money as the exploding industry offers a 'generational wealth opportunity'

Jefferies analyst Owen Bennett is bullish on US cannabis stocks. Bennett initiated coverage of seven companies, and gave all of them a buy rating in a note dated Wednesday. He said Cresco is his top pick.

Marijuana legalization is sweeping the US. See every state where cannabis is legal.

Cannabis for adult-use is officially legal in 19 states in the US now after recreational laws took effect in Virginia, New Mexico, and Connecticut this summer. Our interactive map gives you the run-down of what's going on in each state.

Executive moves

• Psychedelics company Delix Therapeutics announced that it has appointed former NIDA therapeutics division head Dr. Kurt Rasmussen as its chief scientific officer.

Deals, launches, and IPOs

• Eaze announced on Thursday that it had launched its cannabis delivery app on the Apple App Store. Apple said recently that it would no longer ban cannabis apps as long as they were geo-restricted to areas where it was legal. Read more at Marijuana Moment.
• Psychedelics media company Microdose said it closed a "seven figure round" of funding from investors like Origin Therapeutics, Negev Capital and The Conscious Fund.
• Cannabis tech company Fyllo and media analytics company Comscore announced a partnership that would target mainstream marketers looking to reach cannabis and CBD consumers.

Chart of the week

Though equity is often touted as a key reason for legalization, not all states are creating equitable cannabis programs, according to the Leafly Seeds of Change Report, which looked at factors like expungement, quality data, and equity investing. Colorado, the oldest legal cannabis market in the US, ranks first with a score of 95. The full report can be found here.

What we're reading

Governor Support Pushes Cannabis Legalization Bills Over Finish Line in 2021 (Cannabis Wire)

White House And U.S. Anti-Doping Agency Criticize Marijuana Ban After Richardson Suspension (Marijuana Moment)

Opinion: Sha'Carri Richardson's Olympics ban for marijuana is dumb, archaic, and immoral (Insider)