BONITA SPRINGS, Fla. — Green Check (GC), a leading provider of financial service solutions and insights in the cannabis market, announced an exclusive partnership with CTrust, the cannabis industry’s first credit rating and risk monitoring agency, and Coda Capital Advisors, a firm providing institutional debt capital to the cannabis industry. The partnership will provide banks and credit unions with new, data-driven transparency and insights to open up lending options for the cannabis industry.
Green Check, CTrust and Coda Capital Advisors will provide a platform for financial institutions to start lending to compliant cannabis-related businesses (CRBs) in as few as 60 days. Available to the more than 170 banks and credit unions on Green Check’s platform, the partnership incorporates Green Check’s industry data and lending policy guidance, CTrust’s risk-based pricing engine and industry-first credit rating, and Coda’s innovative loan participation program. The result is a tailored, full-spectrum, and data-driven lending program that incorporates policy guidance, origination and underwriting, de-risking, servicing, monitoring, and reporting.
“We’re excited about this opportunity to provide financial institutions with better data, resources and options to lend to CRBs confidently, compliantly – and profitably,” said Kevin Hart, founder and CEO of Green Check. “We already work with more financial institutions than any other cannabis banking solutions provider. This partnership with CTrust and Coda will expand our ability to create impactful, mutually beneficial opportunities for our financial institution and CRB clients, furthering our mission to democratize business and financial services for the cannabis industry.”
Access to attractive debt capital remains a significant challenge for even the best CRBs. Many financial institutions have struggled to understand the relatively new cannabis industry and the limited credit data and industry-specific collateral considerations of CRBs. This lending reluctance has forced many CRBs to turn to expensive private lenders – until now. Through the power of this partnership, Green Check clients can lend at an industry-specific, risk-aligned premium that constitutes a much more favorable rate for CRBs than from alternative lenders.
“Working with Coda within the Green Check ecosystem, we combine our analysis and measurement with data and capital partners to evaluate risk, enable growth and monitor performance in an unprecedented way for the industry,” said Dotan Y. Melech, founder & CEO of CTrust. “We add transparency and clarity in cannabis lending using our risk-based pricing engine to align rate expectations.”
“There is a unique and timely opportunity for first movers to create a robust participation market for high-quality credit, supported by the strongest cannabis operators in the country. With nearly limitless demand, those who act quickly can position themselves at the forefront of this rapidly growing sector,” said Brendan Fay, chief investment officer at Coda Capital Advisors. “Coda was founded to bring institutional quality capital into the cannabis space, and this partnership, built on a foundation of industry reputation, cutting-edge technology and innovative solutions, is a significant step to get there.”
About Green Check
Green Check (GC) is modernizing the way cannabis businesses and financial institutions work together. Founded in 2017 by a team of technology, banking, and regulatory experts, GC provides industry-leading technology, advisory services and data-driven insights to more than 170 financial institutions and over 11,000 cannabis-related businesses. Green Check was included in both the 2024 and 2023 Forbes Cannabis 42.0 list, recognized by CNBC as one of the World’s Top FinTech Companies, and named one of 50 game-changers in the cannabis industry in the 4th annual The Cannabis 50. It has been repeatedly recognized as Top Compliance Company and Top Compliance Leader at the PBC Awards, the premier cannabis industry honors. In addition, it has been recognized as the Top Financial Technology by the Green Market Report and was also named as one of top Best Places to Work in Fintech in 2022, 2023 and 2024 by American Banker.
About CTrust
CTrust is the cannabis industry’s first credit rating and risk monitoring agency. We provide a free score and report to cannabis-related businesses that is used by lenders to evaluate creditworthiness, enabling a transparent credit risk environment for operators & financial institutions. At CTrust, our mission is to provide objective, trusted and data-driven solutions for cannabis businesses, financial institutions, and investors that fosters transparency and trust throughout our industry. We are the next generation of cannabis business intelligence.
About Coda Capital Advisors
Coda was formed to bring institutional debt capital to the legal US cannabis industry. As operators themselves, Coda’s founders experienced first-hand the lack of access to institutional debt to legal and compliant CRBs. That is why Coda invested over two years of research understanding not only the US cannabis industry but also the financial institutions that bank them (collectively, Coda refers to these financial institutions as “Cannabis Banks”). Coda’s founders have a wide range of expertise that encompass structured finance, cannabis operations, commercial real estate, and banking. By leveraging their vast experiences, Coda’s founders are uniquely qualified to partner with GCV to create a participation platform for cannabis.
