In our latest Trade To Black podcast presented by Flowhub, hosts Shadd Dales and Anthony Varrell share more encouraging news for the cannabis and psychedelic industries. In the first segment, the boys discuss the appointment of Michael Davis to lead the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research following major leadership changes within the agency. Davis has deep experience in psychiatric drug development and psychiatric-based therapeutics at a time when Compass Pathways (NASDAQ: CMPS ) is moving rapidly toward potential FDA approval for COMP360. We’ll take a look at Safe Harbor Financial’s (NASDAQ: SHFS ) latest earnings, and in part two, Michael Bronstein of the American Hemp and Hemp Trade Association joins the show as all eyes turn to Virginia.

Significant development in the field of psychiatric medicine. the elevation of Dr. Michael Davis to acting director of the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research after a period of leadership turmoil within the agency. Davis has extensive experience in psychiatric drug review and previously served as chief medical officer at a nonprofit organization focused on psychiatric-based therapies before returning to the FDA.

His appointment could be a significant signal to the industry, particularly Compass Pathways, whose COMP360 psilocybin treatment for treatment-resistant depression is currently under an NDA priority review voucher, which could significantly shorten the FDA’s review timeline.

Safe Harbor Financial’s latest earnings show continued discipline under CEO Terry Mendez, including modest revenue growth, sharply higher loan program revenue, reduced operating expenses and a swing from negative equity to positive equity. Is Safe Harbor the evolution of a full-spectrum financial services platform tailored to small and medium-sized cannabis operators? We will discuss.

Michael Bronstein, president of the American Hemp and Hemp Trade Association, joins the Insider’s Edge segment show to offer a detailed look at the regulatory and political landscape ahead of the June ALJ hearings. Opposition groups like SAM are well funded and should not be underestimated. On Virginia’s adult-use bill, Bronstein said intelligence points in both directions, with no clear outcome ahead of Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s Friday deadline and the risk of a veto remains very real after she rejected several proposed changes. He also provided an update on Pennsylvania, noting that gaming interests have poured nearly ten million dollars into the state’s primary races, creating significant tension in a Senate caucus that continues to complicate the prospects for cannabis legalization there.

This and more when you join.

In our latest Trade To Black podcast presented by Flowhub, hosts Shadd Dales and Anthony Varrell recap another busy week for cannabis earnings, with reforms on the horizon, with two very different stories in the industry. First, Rubicon Organics (TSXV:ROMJ / OTCQX:ROMJF) CEO Margaret Brody joins the show after the company reported Q1 results that showed revenue growth but also some short-term pressure related to the Cascadia facility ramp. In the second segment, Jushi Holdings (CSE:JUSH / OTCQX:JUSHF) CEO Jim Cacioppo joins us to talk about the company’s latest quarter, and finally FundCanna CEO Adam Stettner returns for his weekly update.

Rubicon Organics CEO Margaret Brody presents the company’s first quarter results, which showed revenue of $13.7 million, up 11% year-over-year, although margins came under short-term pressure as the company expands its newly licensed 47,000-square-foot Cascadia facility. Management is deliberately absorbing short-term profitability headwinds to position Simply Bare, 1964 Supply Co. and Wildflower for a much stronger second half of 2026. He also acknowledges that the BC distributor strike has dragged down Q1 performance, but is confident that the reverse is now behind them. Internationally, Brodie highlighted the strong reception of the ICBC trade show in Germany and the growing demand from overseas medical markets, underscoring the company’s ambition to become the world’s most trusted home of premium cannabis brands.

Jushi Holdings CEO Jim Cacioppo hailed his company’s most recent quarter, which delivered $66.4 million in revenue, one of the more significant refinancing stories the industry has seen this year due to improved margins, stronger wholesale numbers and

The conversation touched on Virginia’s adult use, Ohio’s improving sales trends following the use of cannabis, Pennsylvania’s legalization prospects and why management believes the tightening of cannabis rules could be a significant catalyst for licensed operators.

FundCanna CEO Adam Stettner offers a capital markets outlook on earnings season with potential reforms, what operators should watch for in the emerging Georgia medical market and what the current funding environment reveals about where the industry is headed. Discover everything as you listen.

US federal rescheduling now moves cannabinoid-based products to Schedule III. In our latest Trade To Black podcast, host Shadd Dales sits down with Aras Azatyan, CEO of Avicanna (TSX:AVCN / OTCQX:AVCNF) and Dr. Carolina Urban, Executive Vice President of Scientific and Medical Affairs, to talk about what US hemp realignment could mean for cannabinoid-based medicines. The move could have some profound implications for the Canadian cannabinoid biopharmaceutical company that has spent a decade building to this very moment.

There are three overlapping possibilities created by the rearrangement: increased interest from pharmaceutical and institutional investors now taking cannabinoid therapeutics seriously, the ability to advance clinical programs into US trial sites under a more permissive Schedule III framework, and a higher regulatory bar that rewards companies with established intellectual property and clinical infrastructure;

Azatyan argues that the vast majority of cannabis companies, both in Canada and the US, are not set up for a true pharmaceutical model. Complying with GMP standards, building CMC kits, and conducting phase one to three clinical trials require fundamentally different skills than operating dispensaries or manufacturing consumer products, and the gap cannot be closed quickly with capital alone.

Dr. Urban identified chronic pain and anxiety-related conditions as the most immediate therapeutic targets for the US market under Schedule III. Avicanna’s ongoing Phase II randomized controlled trial for osteoarthritic pain and Phase I THC anxiety study at the University of Calgary as the clearest near-term avenues for co-development partnerships with larger pharmaceutical companies.

Avicanna’s proprietary Qwik rapid-onset nanotechnology platform, designed to increase the rate of absorption and reduce variability in oral cannabinoid delivery, is potentially a ready-to-license vehicle that is well-suited to US pharmaceutical partnerships, especially as prescriptions push out standardized forms of smoking-only medications.

On the international level, Azatyan believes that one thing is true. adult-use cannabis is a domestic market play, while medical and pharmaceutical cannabis is international in nature. He pointed to the company’s Colombian subsidiary as a strategically positioned GMP-compliant supplier capable of serving global markets at competitive prices, with the possibility of one day exporting to the United States itself.

This and more in this episode.