UK Cannabis Companies Can List on London Stock Exchange

United Kingdom-based medical cannabis companies are eligible for listing on the London Stock Exchange so long as they have the appropriate government licenses, IR Magazine reports. Under the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) guidance, companies that also produce recreational cannabis are banned from the exchange.

The FCA said it will allow overseas cannabis companies on the exchange as long as their operations are not considered criminal under the UK‘s Proceeds of Crime Act (PoCA). The Agency said it will review such businesses to ensure that they don’t run afoul of the law.

“We consider that there remains a risk that the proceeds from overseas medicinal cannabis business may constitute criminal property for the purposes of the PoCA. This includes where the company possesses a license issued by an overseas medicines or pharmaceuticals licensing authority.” – FCA in a statement via IR Magazine

Roby Zomer, co-founder and managing director of MGC Pharmaceuticals, which is already publicly traded in Australia, said the firm had started seeking listing in the UK “more than a year ago.” He said the company would “be one of the first cannabis-related companies to list in the UK” in the wake of the guidance.

The FCA said that while a company might be legally operating outside of the UK, the agency cannot “assume a person who has been licensed in an overseas country would receive a license…in the UK as licensing regimes differ globally.” Cannabis companies outside of the UK that apply for listing will have to show that it would be legal under UK rules and provide information about its business and licenses.