The House of Representatives passed H.R. 1595 – Secure And Fair Enforcement Banking Act of 2019 (“SAFE Act”) on September 25, 2019, in a historic step toward federal marijuana legalization. (Jeff Smith, Marijuana Business Daily). Introduced by Representative Ed Perlmutter (D-Co.), the SAFE Act, which required a two-thirds majority in the House, passed with a vote of 321-103 in a rare showing of bipartisan support. Id. Under current federal money laundering statutes, any financial firm that provides services to a cannabis company, regardless of its operation in a legal state, faces heavy financial penalties. (Lane and Gangitano, The Hill). However, under the SAFE Act, financial institutions and insurance companies could provide commercial banking services to state-legal cannabis companies without fear of federal penalty. (Staff, Marijuana Business Daily).
Read MoreThe United Kingdom's Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) paused Amazon's investment into online food delivery company Deliveroo while it investigates the deal. (Kate Holton and James Davey, Reuters). In May 2019, Amazon led a $575 million investment, with other businesses, into Deliveroo. (Business Insider). Although Amazon would only retain a minority share in Deliveroo, the CMA is concerned this investment could “result in Amazon and Deliveroo ceasing to be distinct.” (Danica Kirka, AP News).
Read MoreBudweiser Brewing Co. APAC Ltd. (“Budweiser Asia”), made an impressive entrance into the Hong Kong market last week. Budweiser Asia, a unit of Anheuser-Busch InBev (“AB InBev”), debuted in the new market on September 30, 2019, raising $5 billion for the world’s largest brewer in this share sale. (Wang, Wall Street Journal) Budweiser Asia’s performance claims the second-largest initial public offering in the world this year, trailing Uber Technologies Inc., who raised $8.1 billion and listed on the New York Stock Exchange. (Wang, Wall Street Journal)
Read MorePhone carrier giants Sprint and T-Mobile announced an unprecedented merger in the spring of 2018. The merger would create a $146 billion powerhouse company under the T-Mobile name. (Taylor Soper, GeekWire). As of now, T-Mobile and Sprint are the third and fourth-largest carriers in the U.S., just behind AT&T and Verizon. Id. However, the Department of Justice (DOJ) initially wasn’t sold and filed suit to block the merger. (U.S. D.O.J. Compl. 3. July 26, 2019). A deal of this size raises fair market and antitrust concerns for both the D.O.J. and Federal Communications Commission (F.C.C.) and is dependent on the regulators’ approval. (Taylor Soper, GeekWire).
Read MoreSince the early 1990s, the legalization of marijuana has been a prominent subject in American legislation. (Scott C. Martin, TIME) As public support for legalization has grown, the laws affecting cannabis and marijuana related businesses have been difficult to navigate. (Hilary Sledge-Sarnor, Business Law Today) These difficulties are largely attributed to a number of inconsistencies between federal and state law, which make it increasingly difficult to determine what is legal in regard to marijuana-related activity. (Id.) As of June 25, 2019, thirty-three states and the District of Columbia have passed laws legalizing marijuana, with eleven explicitly regulating marijuana for recreational use. (GOVERNING)
Read MoreCalifornia-based GoodRx Inc. (“GoodRx”), an online and mobile app marketplace for discounts on prescription drugs, has acquired San Francisco-based telemedicine startup HeyDoctor LLC (“HeyDoctor”), an online platform that provides treatment, prescriptions, and lab tests from doctors for routine medical care. (Brown, Bloomberg; LaRock Business Insider). The combined company enables GoodRx to position itself solidly in the virtual health care market by providing HeyDoctor’s telemedical services to its vast network of loyal consumers.
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