Leaf Trade, the leading cannabis wholesale marketplace and payments platform in the US legal cannabis market, is poised to expand into new West Coast markets after closing a $5.5 million Series A preferred round of investment.
The influx of fresh capital, led by Artemis Growth Partners with participation from Hyde Park Angels, was announced March 22nd and also will allow the fintech leader to reinvest in the company’s technological innovations being used in its 17 core markets.
“This new round of investment will help Leaf Trade expand its mission of helping cannabis wholesalers streamline their businesses to see greater ROI,” said James Yi, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Leaf Trade. “And we are particularly excited to ramp up our efforts in West Coast markets, where supply-chain inefficiencies continue to hamper many cannabis companies, especially newly licensed ones.”
Total funding for Leaf Trade now comes to $10 million to date. The Chicago-based technology company facilitates wholesale ordering and fulfillment for cannabis cultivators and retailers.
Formed in 2016, Leaf Trade recently launched its integrated payments platform, Leaf Pay, which provides for seamless, end-to-end order processing and payment for transactions on its digital platform. The payment feature utilizes compliant bank-based payment processing and is designed for ease of use. It also is more cost-competitive than credit card or wire payments, making it one of the lowest-cost payment options available to cannabis wholesalers.
“Leaf Trade has an outstanding team focused on lowering companies’ operating costs and decreasing their operational inefficiencies,” said Michael Piermont, President and Chief Revenue Officer at Leaf Trade. “This latest round of investment will allow Leaf Trade to redouble its efforts and better serve the needs of even more cannabis wholesalers.”
Leaf Trade has more than $1B in annualized net GMV, making it one of the largest national players in its fintech category. It is used by some of the world’s biggest cannabis companies, including CuraLeaf, Verano, Green Thumb Industries, Columbia Care, Vireo Health, Acreage Holdings and Jushi. Leaf Trade is available in 20 markets, conducts $1.5 billion dollars in cannabis orders annually and manages almost a third of the US cannabis wholesale market.
Leaf Trade was the first cannabis platform to dominate wholesale transactions in the company’s home state of Illinois, and it is now the wholesale platform of choice for many in today’s dynamic US cannabis market, which is experiencing an industry expansion rate of more than 25% per year.
