In the latest Trade To Black podcast presented by Flowhub, host Anthony Varrell welcomes two heavyweight guests, FundCanna CEO Adam Stettner and renowned short seller and activist investor Mark Codes, to discuss cannabis lending, early redemptions, short selling and the future of the cannabis industry.

In the headlines: Senators Booker, Schumer and Wyden reintroduced the Hemp Governance and Opportunity Act. In psychiatry, Eli Lilly agreed to acquire AtaiBeckley in a deal worth about $2.8 billion and up to $3.8 billion in milestones, confirming a long-held thesis that big pharma would eventually capture the herbal medicine bid, even though the structure wasn’t particularly favorable for retail. COMPASS Pathways and Definium Therapeutics remain the other horses in the race.

In the first segment, Stettner looked back at market lending data from across the industry, explaining what carriers are borrowing for, the state markets are strong and what the numbers portend for the 2Q earnings season. He said the biggest surprise of the ALJ hearings was that there were no bombshells, almost boring formalities, where the federal government’s military presented really good evidence for the medical value of cannabis, while the opposition offered little substance. He then explained the mechanics of the early repayment cycle. FundCanna payouts are running at 97.8 cents on the dollar, versus a typical range of 94 to 97, with a faster capital cycle over the past two months, signaling healthier operators looking to scale post-schedule. He argued that the sector was being valued as if it was dead and that 280E relief plus Treasury guidance would fundamentally change these businesses.

In part two, Codex spoke out ahead of the federal hemp ban that takes effect Nov. 12, arguing for a one-plant, one-rule rule, that intoxicating hemp and cannabis are the same product, that synthetics should be banned, and that age restrictions, tracking and taxation should govern both. Driving pushed back if the hemp route survives the schedule at all, and they’ll explain where they split. Codes also detailed how short sellers can distort small-cap stocks through outright shorting, fraud and manipulation, reflected on Glass House Brands (NYSE: GLAS ) and previewed the company’s Aug. 28 call on the NYSE as the second U.S. plant operator to go public.

This and more when you join.

Shadd Dales and Anthony Varrell have just returned from Arlington, Virginia and have been through an already fast paced week in the cannabis industry. Michael Bronstein returns to his weekly Insiders Edge segment as the DEA Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) hearing enters its second final day. We also discuss Curaleaf’s two announcements, the movement in the psych space, and what’s needed from the US Treasury.

In the headlines, Curaleaf (TSX: CURA, OTCQX: CURLF) became the first company to secure registration in Spain for standardized THC-dominant and CBD-dominant cannabis preparations, enabling hospitals to provide medical cannabis in Spain’s emerging national medical framework. The company already operates an EU-GMP facility and research laboratory in Alicante, adding to an international footprint that includes Germany, the UK, Portugal and Poland.

Curaleaf also announced a long-term international supply agreement with Cannara Biotech (TSX: LOVE , OTCQX: LOVFF ), positioning Cannara as a key primary flower supplier for Curaleaf’s expanding global medical markets, with a potential value of up to C$21 million. Cannara operates the approximately 1.6 million square foot Valleyfield facility, which was acquired from TGOD for $27 million; pennies on the dollar for a build that reportedly cost much more.

AtaiBeckley is up roughly 20% in the markets on the rumors, and we’ve announced an upcoming interview with Definium Therapeutics (NASDAQ: DFTX ) CEO Rob Barrow about the company’s trials and timelines.

Bronstein delivered his reading during the ALJ hearing, with testimony from Nebraska, Idaho and Indiana continuing, and the trial ending tomorrow. The opposition has no evidence, and their case is based on process, not science. Bronstein expects a post-administration trial in the D.C. Circuit, noting that adversaries cannot litigate there and arguing that asking the court to invalidate the process by two rival presidential administrations is too hard a sell.

Bronstein also broke down the states’ main talking points: a challenge to the Administrative Procedure Act, treaty obligations under the Uniform Convention and the claim that Schedule III gives cannabis companies an unfair advantage over pharmaceutical developers. He dismantled the pharmaceutical angle as the straw built inside hemp’s own echo chamber and had a pointed answer about whether treaty reform was overdue. On capital markets, Bronstein pointed to ATACH’s Capital Markets Council and said Treasury guidance is the domino that moves everything.

Hear our thoughts when you join.

In the latest Trade To Black podcast presented by Flowhub, hosts Shadd Dales and Anthony Varrell broadcast live from Arlington, Virginia at Jushi Holdings’ (OTCQB: JUSHF) Beyond/Hello dispensary, the only legal medical cannabis retailer within a 20- to 30-minute radius of the Health Service area. We sit down with Jushy’s leadership: Chief Strategy Officer Trent Wolovec, Chief Creative Officer Andreas Neumann, and Stacey Rush, founder of Stacey Rush Lifestyle, and the cast of The Real Housewives of Potomac.

Stacey Rush has launched a wellness brand, Shayo, with Jushi. Now sold in Virginia and Nevada, the low-dose gummies are aimed at new and female consumers, and chief creative officer Andreas Neumann described the brand as coming to market in about 40 days.

Rush also addressed representation, noting that black entrepreneurs make up less than 4% of cannabis owners, and black women make up far less, which he largely attributes to access to capital. He said he was invited to two congressional briefings and joined the US Cannabis Roundtable, using his platform to advocate for legalization and portray cannabis as a health, not a poison.

Washington reporter Gretchen Gale covers the day after a DEA administrative law judge’s hearing on the realignment, where Nebraska, Idaho and Tennessee are expected to testify. Gailey argued that banning states were negotiating from weakness and that legislative change remained generational. He also highlighted a Massachusetts ballot initiative that sought to repeal adult use, warning that low midterm turnout could jeopardize narrow-margin programs.

Joshi’s chief strategy officer, Trent Wolovec, detailed the company’s Virginia strategy ahead of the state’s transition from medical to adult use on July 1, 2027. Operating in the exclusive HSA II space, Jushi expects to be short on biomass at launch and is doubling its indoor coverage. Woloveck touched on cannabis prohibition, differences in consumer behavior between medical and adult use, and capital market plans, including realignment in Nevada and possible exchange growth, while weighing in on stalled reform in Pennsylvania.

The episode closed with a boots-on-the-ground look at Jushi’s 93,000-square-foot Manassas development and processing center, with a further 65,000 square feet under construction, and her flagship Beyond/Hello dispensary. Neumann and Wolovec discussed the building’s branding and the surrounding Northern Virginia economy, home to a large share of the nation’s data centers, which helps make lenders comfortable financing cannabis, underscoring why the state is widely viewed as a sleeping giant.