A large B2B marketplace for cannabis buyers and sellers is getting into the finance game.

LeafLink says it serves 50% of the U.S. wholesale cannabis industry across 30 markets. And now the B2B marketplace has made an acquisition to provide new funding options to pot sellers and others that have trouble securing bank loans.

LeafLink, founded in 2016, is a New York B2B marketplace. It connects about 8,400 marijuana retailers with 3,700 cannabis brands and distributors.

LeafLink has purchased the of Dama Financial’s banking division, one of the industry’s largest cannabis banking platforms.

“This acquisition lays the groundwork for a future integrated banking solution, signifying a monumental step towards eliminating one of the most persistent hurdles facing cannabis operators: the lack of access to secure, dependable, and compliant financial services,” LeafLink says.

LeafLink did not release terms of the deal. The ongoing federal prohibition has limited cannabis operators’ access to traditional banks. That has left many businesses in a difficult position with vital services often withdrawn without notice, minimal feature availability, cumbersome processes, or expensive operating costs riddled with hidden fees.

LeafLink acquisition of banking division

Credit unions and small state-chartered banks servicing the remainder of the industry have similar limitations for cannabis operators, LeafLink says.

With over $3 billion in processed transactions, Dama Financial is one of the largest cannabis-focused banking solutions in the industry. It serves more than half of the cannabis-legal states in the U.S., according to LeafLink.

“After witnessing firsthand the negative impact the federal prohibition has had on operators’ access to traditional banks, we are thrilled to add banking to LeafLink’s product suite,” says LeafLink CEO Artie Minson. “And very few companies and people have the expertise that Dama Financial offers to the cannabis banking space. By joining forces and incorporating Dama’s banking product into our existing robust suite of services, we will be well-positioned to usher in a new era of efficiency and help address some of the biggest challenges cannabis operators face.”

With the addition of new finance options to cannabis sellers and others, the LeafLink platform now offers a suite of services for cannabis brands and retailers. That includes integrated tools like:

• Order and category management
• Payments
• Data
• Analytics
• Advertising

For sellers, the marketplace platform enables them to access a real-time inventory menu, enter orders on behalf of buyers, log sales activities, and receive and approve inbound orders. In addition, sellers can track order status, share details with customers, and track upselling and cross-selling activities and opportunities, among other features.

For buyers, marketplace tools include order and reorder management, customer support, order-tracking, and the ability to request samples.

The company also says its marketplace platform processes more than 1 billion transactions annually, valued at about $4.5 billion.

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