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What’s the biggest challenge facing the cannabis industry right now, and how are you and/or your company addressing it?
The biggest challenge facing the cannabis industry is limited access to banking and payment processing. Despite state-level legalization, cannabis businesses struggle with cash-only operations, security risks, exclusion from major payment networks, and heavy compliance burdens.
At PayRio, we’re directly tackling this challenge by bringing compliant, scalable, and innovative payment processing solutions to market. We serve many parts of the overall cannabis industry, from retail dispensaries to B2B supply chain and high-risk e-commerce.
By providing reliable payment solutions, we’re enabling cannabis businesses to move beyond cash-only operations, reducing risk while improving operational efficiency. This focus is helping companies across the cannabis ecosystem get paid easier, which in turn helps the entire industry grow and blossom.
Where do you see the most exciting opportunity for growth and innovation in cannabis?
The most exciting opportunity for growth in cannabis lies in the complete descheduling of cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act. Unlike rescheduling, full descheduling would eliminate Section 280E tax restrictions, enable mainstream banking access, and create pathways for interstate commerce.
Meanwhile, the SAFER Banking Act offers an immediate stepping stone by providing safe harbor for financial institutions to serve cannabis businesses, reducing cash handling risks, and enabling more transparent financial practices.
At PayRio, we’re positioning ourselves at this regulatory intersection by developing payment solutions that address today’s challenges while building infrastructure that will allow the industry to truly blossom when these reforms arrive.
What’s one piece of advice you would give to someone looking to break into the cannabis industry?
If I could give just one piece of advice to someone looking to break into the cannabis industry, it would be: Be prepared for volatility and challenges. The cannabis industry, with its evolving regulations and market dynamics, presents unique hurdles that require resilience and strategic thinking.
Resilience, adaptability, and a problem-solving mindset are key traits that will help you navigate this industry successfully. These who make it aren’t necessarily the ones with the most capital or connections; they’re the ones who get knocked down seven times and stand up eight.
What is the most important thing you have learned from your experiences in the cannabis industry?
The most important lesson I’ve learned is that embracing difficulty is essential to success in this industry.
Surprisingly, the hardest aspects of my job have become my favorite. The cannabis landscape’s volatile nature with its regulatory hurdles, banking rejections, and market fluctuations has forged our resilience and sparked our creativity. Without navigating these challenges, we couldn’t truly appreciate what makes this industry special.
What do you want your legacy to be as it relates to the cannabis industry?
At PayRio, we envision our legacy as pioneers who helped legitimize and transform the cannabis industry through financial inclusion and technological innovation.
As the cannabis sector evolves from its shadowed past into a respected wellness and therapeutic space, we aim to be remembered as the company that helped bridge the gap between this emerging market and mainstream financial services.
Our ultimate legacy goal is to reach a point where specialized payment solutions for cannabis are no longer necessary because we’ve helped build a world where these businesses are treated with the same respect and services as any other legal industry.