MJBiz - September/October 2024 - 10

FIVE QUESTIONS
with Sundie Seefried
Cannabis Pioneer
Makes Banking Predictions
With more than $50 million on the books, CEO plays it safe
By Omar Sacirbey
S
undie Seefried burst onto
the cannabis industry scene
10 years ago as the CEO of
Partner Colorado Credit Union,
where she launched Safe Harbor
Financial, a program to service
the new marijuana businesses
popping up across the state after
voters legalized adult use.
Safe Harbor garnered dozens
of marijuana business clients in
its first two years, and on
April 20, 2016, Seefried published
" Navigating Safe Harbor: Cannabis
Banking in a Time of Uncertainty. "
The book became-and
remains-the ultimate blueprint
for safe and successful marijuana
banking, establishing Seefried as
a cannabis industry pioneer.
In 2022, Seefried spun off Safe
Harbor into its own separate
business entity and took the
company public on the Nasdaq
stock exchange.
Today, Safe Harbor services
more than 600 marijuana business
clients in more than 40
states and has executed well
over $20 billion in transactions.
In June, Safe Harbor launched a
lending program with loans typically
ranging between $5 million
and $10 million and lending rates
of 8%-13%.
Seefried spoke with
MJBizMagazine about what
the next decade holds for Safe
Harbor and cannabis banking
overall.
What impact has the
cannabis industry downturn
in recent years had on Safe
Harbor and its clients?
The fast legalization across the
country has caused a lot of trouble,
but so has the M&A activity.
Operators overindulged in
investor money and, at some
point, they had to tighten their
belts-and that's what we've
seen them do.
As far as we're concerned, we
kept up with the emerging markets
as they legalized, and that
allowed us to pick up the same
business across state lines. We're
now taking money in over 40
states across the country.
Why and how did you start
the lending program?
I wanted to do that right from
the start, but the regulators were
not comfortable with it.
It got to the point, finally, in
about 2019, that we started talking
with regulators and said, " We
have all these clients. They need
access to capital. Access to capital
through debt is safer for us to
take because we know where the
money's coming from. "
Remember, everything the regulators
look at is illicit business.
I'm saying this is the safest way
to get money in their pocket,
other than investors.
I made a case to the regulators
that the money was good. So,
10 September-October 2024 | MJBizMagazine
Sundie
Seefried
we started very slowly and really
walked the regulators through
it, just like we had to do with
cannabis banking.
We were able to launch a program
and have over $50 million
on the books. We are conservative.
We underwrite like a financial
institution, so our loans are
not projection based. They are
based on real estate and assets.
We're comfortable with it. The
reason that we have to write
like a bank is because it sits on
the bank balance sheet, and the
bank has to be very comfortable
with our underwriting.
What kind of impact has
potential rescheduling
had? Are you seeing more
activity or optimism from
your clients?
Optimism is always there.
But rescheduling is not only
good for the industry. It rolls up
to us at Safe Harbor, the financial
MJBiz - September/October 2024

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