Cannabis Movers & Shakers: Trulieve, Grown Rogue, Neptune Wellness, Simplifya

Trulieve Appoints Nilyum Jhala As CTO

Trulieve Cannabis Corp. TRUL TCNNF has named Nilyum Jhala its new chief technology officer.

Jhala brings over two decades of experience in technology leadership and digital transformation results in multinational retail and wholesale environments.

Prior to this, Jhala was vice president of global and digital technology at Hallmark Cards, Inc.

"We are thrilled to welcome Nilyum to Trulieve's executive team," said CEO Kim Rivers, who purchased a $100 000 stake in the company on Tuesday. "His track record of success in global retail organizations and his expertise in complex systems architecture will support Trulieve's continued exponential growth, ensure efficiencies across the enterprise as we scale, and enhance the exceptional customer service that Trulieve is known for."

Grown Rogue Promotes Ryan Kee To CFO, Michael Johnston Resigns

Grown Rogue International Inc. GRIN GRUSF has promoted Ryan Kee to serve as a chief financial officer, replacing Michael Johnston, who opted to reign.

Kee has been working with the Medford, Oregon-based company since September 2020.

He has vast experience in accounting and finance as a Certified Public Accountant.

“Ryan has met all of our expectations since joining Grown Rogue a year ago, and we are excited for him to take a more active role in the leadership of our financial department as the Company continues to scale,” Obie Strickler, CEO of Grown Rogue, said Wednesday. “We are sorry to lose Mike, who was instrumental in getting us public and helping set the foundation for what Ryan is carrying forward.”

Neptune Wellness Hires John Wirt As General Counsel

Neptune Wellness Solutions Inc. NEPT NEPT announced Thursday it has tapped John Wirt as general counsel.

In his new position, Wirt will lead to lead the company's internal legal department, which includes recent hire, senior vice president, compliance and legal affairs, Gary S. Kaminsky. 

"John's extensive legal experience in highly-regulated global industries combined with his significant financial acumen as a CPA and experience as Audit Chair of a public company, make him uniquely suited to build and direct an industry-leading legal department that will take us into the future" Michael Cammarata, the company's president, and CEO, said. "Additionally, by bolstering our internal legal department, Neptune will realize significant efficiencies on external legal resources."

Simplifya Taps Jeffrey B. Katz To Board Of Directors

Cannabis-focused tech company Simplifya said Thursday it has appointed Jeffrey B. Katz to serve on its board of directors.

Katz is the co-founder of Mercury Payment Systems Inc., which was sold for $1.6 billion to Vantiv, Inc., and then, acquired by Worldpay Inc., a subsidiary of Fidelity National Information Services, and MassPay Incorporated.

In addition, Katz is an investor in Simplifya and has agreed to advise the Denver-based company on the expansion of its operational footprint, as well as the launch of its newest product offering, TENDR.

“As a fintech industry pioneer, Katz fundamentally changed the way the POS sector generated revenue by aligning with POS developers and resellers to deliver payment processing to restaurateurs and retailers,” Simplifya CEO and Co-Founder Marion Mariathasan commented.

Photo: Courtesy of Kym MacKinnon on Unsplash