MJBizMag February 2021 - 18

CompanyNews | U.S., Canada & International
cultivation and manufacturing and won't allow Vireo to
enter the retail side of the Nevada cannabis market.
The move gives Vireo a seventh state presence
to add to its portfolio. The company, which initially
launched in Minnesota, also has marijuana business
holdings in Arizona, Maryland, Massachusetts, New
Mexico and New York.
Though the news release announcing the closing
didn't disclose terms of the deal, the purchase price was
outlined in Vireo's listing statement when it went public
in 2019.
Under terms of the deal, Vireo agreed to pay nonrefundable
deposits of $550,000 to the two companies
that owned the four permits. The deal calls for total
payments of $1.5 million in cash and $2.5 million in
convertible debt instruments.
Social Equity Mentoring in Arizona
MITA-AZ, a cannabis trade association
in Arizona, is offering a complimentary,
16-week Social Equity Applicant Mentorship
Program sponsored by Copperstate Farms, Weedmaps
and Scottsdale Community College. The program is
designed to help social equity applicants secure one of
the 26 licenses that Prop 207 mandates be awarded to
minorities. The course covers all aspects of the cannabis
industry, the license application process and the
business skills needed to run a successful enterprise.
Extraction Tech Firm Changes Name
Zelios Colorado, a hemp and CBD extraction company
in Erie, Colorado, rebranded as Gemini Extraction and
Refinement Solutions. A statement from the business
said the new name reflects the company's capabilities of
both CO2
and ethanol-extraction methods as well as new
refinement technologies.
Gemini's facilities are all certified by Eurofins to
Current Good Manufacturing Practice standards. Additionally,
Gemini has developed a 10,000-square-foot
biomass storage and processing facility.
Red White & Bloom Lands $60 Million Loan,
Buys Illinois Property
Toronto-based multistate marijuana company Red
White & Bloom Brands secured a $60 million loan,
then signed a definitive agreement to acquire an
Illinois medical and recreational cultivation facility for
$32.5 million.
RWB said it will pay half the $32.5 million purchase
Aphria-Tilray To Merge
Canadian cannabis companies Aphria and Tilray
announced plans to merge, a transaction that would
create a giant, international marijuana firm with
combined equity value of approximately $3.9 billion. The
merger would make the business the " world's largest
global cannabis company, " based on pro forma revenue
from the past 12 months, the businesses said in a joint
news release. The combined company would operate
under the Tilray name.
Under the deal, structured as a reverse acquisition of
Tilray, each Aphria shareholder would receive 0.8381
Tilray shares for each Aphria share held, meaning Aphria
shareholders would own roughly 62% of outstanding
Tilray shares.
The combined firm would be led by Aphria CEO Irwin
Simon and a nine-person board of directors: seven directors
from Leamington, Ontario-based Aphria and two
from Nanaimo, British Columbia-headquartered Tilray.
18 Marijuana Business Magazine | February 2021
price using cash from the $60 million loan. The
remainder of the loan, which bears a 7% interest rate,
will be used for working capital and debt payments
over three years.
Decibel Raises $30 Million
Decibel Cannabis Co., a vertically
integrated cannabis company
based in Calgary, Alberta, closed
its previously announced
$27.8 million (CA$30 million) debt capital financing with
Connect First Credit Union, also in Calgary.
The credit facilities include $22.6 million of debt and
a $1.2 million authorized overdraft to repay Decibel's
existing debt of $21.2 million. The credit facilities
mature five years from the funding date and amortize
over a 10-year term.
The proceeds will support Decibel's continued sales
growth and working capital requirements.
CANADA DEVELOPMENTS
MJBizMag February 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of MJBizMag February 2021
