 Alliance Global analyst Aaron Grey on Wednesday said a vote by lawmakers to include the SAFE Banking bill in the U.S. House of Representative's annual defense bill is encouraging, but subsequent actions by the Senate remain key to its passage. As proposed, the SAFE Banking law would protect depository institutions by prohibiting regulatory banks from terminating deposit insurance for institutions that service legitimate cannabis businesses, including loans to state-compliant cannabis businesses. The passage of the bill would help lower cost of capital and allow credit card use in dispensaries. "The biggest questions for stocks [is] whether the SAFE act would allow plant-touching companies to uplist to major exchanges," Grey said. The formal name of the House's defense bill is the National Defense Authorization Act. Shares of cannabis companies rose modestly in pre-market trades. Canopy Growth rose 1.1%, Tilray added 0.6% and Acreage rose 3.7%.
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