Abaca and Pacific Valley Bank Partner to Expand California Cannabis Banking Options

SALINAS, Calif., Aug. 25, 2022 Abaca, an industry-recognized financial platform for cannabis operators, and Pacific Valley Bank, are partnering to expand access to cannabis banking in the California market.

For the first time since the state legalized medical marijuana 26 years ago, legal operators in the industry have access to the powerful combination: a bank in tune with the California community and one of the leading cannabis fintech providers with a track record of compliant financial services nationwide. The partnership, Abaca x PVB, provides a single point of access for deposit bank accounts, electronic payment services and cash management options for licensed cannabis businesses in California.

“Abaca has been an agile, reliable, and innovative industry leader in helping connect legal cannabis businesses with financial services,” said Anker Fanoe, CEO at Pacific Valley Bank. “Pacific Valley Bank is a community bank that has been a powerhouse serving the cannabis industry for over two years, with clients from San Diego to Sacramento. Offering accounts with Abaca allows us to deliver a streamlined one-stop-shop for current and future cannabis business customers and to amplify the work we’ve already done as one of the first FDIC-insured banks in California to work with the legal cannabis industry.”

Only a small portion of banks and credit unions across the country are willing to serve the cannabis industry. Therefore, the cannabis industry remains significantly underbanked. Many operators experience difficulty accessing banking services that meet their needs.

As a result, these businesses are cash-heavy, sometimes even putting employees and the public at risk. Abaca x PVB helps this problem in California by normalizing access to modern financial services and treasury management for the cannabis industry across the state and nationwide.

“Many operators across the state have been let down by unsophisticated, unreliable, and  unnecessarily burdensome banking solutions,” said Dan Roda, CEO of Abaca. “Now, operators have access to the best of both worlds – the human touch of a California community bank with a deep understanding of the unique needs of the market and the powerful technology of a financial platform that enables operators to seamlessly manage their finances online. Together, Abaca and Pacific Valley Bank are committed to delivering the highest quality banking experience to the California cannabis industry.”

Founded in 2017, Abaca works with its FDIC-insured bank partners to enable traditional banking services for operators ranging from single dispensaries to entire MSOs in 13 states – and now California. Additionally, the company’s online banking platform offers payment and treasury services to cannabis businesses nationwide. Abaca announced in early 2022 that it had compliantly processed more than $3 billion in transactions for its customers.

Abaca provides state-legal cannabis businesses with compliant bank accounts, cash management, electronic payments, and other financial services through its compliant, tech-powered cannabis banking platform. Abaca and its partner financial institutions are currently accepting traditional bank account applications in Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma and South Dakota. The company’s banking platform also offers lending and payment processing services to cannabis businesses nationwide.

Pacific Valley Bank is a full service business bank that commenced operations in September 2004 to provide exceptional service to customers in California. The Bank offers a broad range of banking products and services, including credit and deposit services to small and medium sized businesses, agriculture related businesses, non-profit organizations, professional service providers and individuals.

This release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance and/or achievements to differ materially from those projected. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, economic conditions in all areas in which the Bank conducts business, including the competitive environment for attracting loans and deposits; supply and demand for real estate and periodic deterioration in real estate prices and/or values in California or other states where we lend; changes in the financial performance and/or condition of our borrowers, depositors, key vendors or counterparties; changes in our levels of delinquent loans, nonperforming assets, allowance for loan losses and charge-offs; the effect of changes in laws and regulations, including accounting practices; changes in estimates of future reserve requirements and minimum capital requirements based upon periodic review thereof under relevant regulatory and accounting requirements; fluctuations in the interest rate and market environment; cyber-security threats, including the loss of system functionality, theft, loss of customer data or money; technological changes and the expanding use of technology in banking; the costs and effects of legal, compliance and regulatory actions; acts of war or terrorism, or natural disasters; and other factors beyond the Bank’s control. These forward-looking statements, which reflect management’s views, are as of the date of this release. Pacific Valley Bank has no obligation to publicly revise these forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances.

(This information is primarily sourced from Abaca.  Highly Capitalized has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this news release. Read our Disclaimer here).