AACE INTERVIEW: Peter Su
As California experienced an explosion of optimism and promises of riches—recall the "Golden Mountain" that brought laborers from China in the late 1800s and led to the racist Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882—cannabis legalization was making its way eastward. New York emerged as a prized jewel in the crown of Cannabis Optimism. In this climate, a group of AAPI individuals formed the Asian Cannabis Roundtable to assist, educate, provide services, and advocate for the AAPI cannabis community. Peter Su, one of the organizers and a vocal supporter of AAPIs in the cannabis industry, became a go-to person for advice and pathways into the legal cannabis market. Today, in Peter Su’s chat with AACE. We received valuable advice and insights. He is the man with the most Post-nominal letters, a list that speaks volumes about his experience and advocacy in cannabis. - Ophelia Chong
Tell us about the moment you decided to join the cannabis industry. Was it during your military career that you saw the benefits for veterans?
In the cannabis industry, we have a large contingent of AAPI veterans, all heading up major brands and ancillary industries serving the cannabis industry ( for example we have Steven Jung of Weedmaps and then PAX, Socrates Rosenfeld of IHeartJane, Yoko Miyashita of Leafly and many, many more in cultivation)
It is a great joy to hear about how people got into the cannabis industry; the origin stories, the passion, the relationships with the plant… it is not something I’ve experienced working with any other industry. I wish I had a more personal story... As a banker, the bank I worked for decided to investigate banking cannabis, and I raised my hand. I would say, though, that I sought it out. I had seen earlier in my career that the folks I knew that did well, tended to specialize in something, they had a niche. So, when the opportunity arose to explore what was virtually unheard of, I dove headfirst.
Did you learn the history of cannabis in Traditional Chinese Medicine through your research?
I have! Partially through your work, Ophelia!! It’s amazing how the history of cannabis is traced through Asia and TCM specifically, and yet today, it literally can be a capital offense punishable by death. I think the power of words and the stigma therein is a big factor.
With the decision to bring cannabis to Schedule 3, how do you feel this will affect state laws with banking?
Oddly enough, I don't think there will be many changes.
As you're likely aware, cannabis banking, as it currently works, is a bit of a gray area overall. Should it move to 3, AU operators would still operate in the same amount of gray. Medical operators -could- be fine, but even for them, the end product(s) would need to comply with whatever federal framework will then exist, and that could be years away. It would still just exist in a state of non-compliance but implied non-enforcement.
A major caveat here is that new guidance (a la fincen 2014) would surely soon thereafter follow, rendering some of what I’m saying here moot.
The good (huge) news is - 280E. Even for the Financial Institutions willing to lend to cannabis today, the issue is most cannabis companies simply won't fit into your traditional underwriting box. With the injection of FCF that removal of 280E brings, many more cannabis deals will be "bankable". It's worth noting this likely most benefits --- you guessed it! The big players.
Payments—Cards could be a sea change, but given the unchanged grayness, would the associations come in? If they did, would they only allow medical compliance? How would that be enforced? Basically, I'm dubious. (And let's be honest—cards exist in cannabis today.)
Capital Markets - Could cannabis companies then be added to the list of US exchanges? This seems likely since there are such companies listed as such now. But again, those are medical/research only. So, would the same limitation exist?
So, there are a lot of unknowns, and a lot of what sounds exactly like it is today.
What advice would you give to anyone entering the industry?
Be sure about your motivations because it can be a grind. If you have any thoughts of instant riches, for example, what will you do when it drags out?
How has your personal opinion changed about cannabis?
I heard someone say this once: if we found cannabis in some random valley somewhere and we didn’t know what it was, and as we started to study it and realized it had all these different and amazing properties, we’d probably say we need to stop everything and study this plant. Yet, because it’s “cannabis”, the reverse is happening. I agree with that perspective. I would love to see more science, more data, more teachings. Which is something I admire you for, Ophelia! You’ve been very consistent about educating from day one.