Skymint Gets Sued, Cannabis Market In Michigan Affects Several Companies & More

Michigan cannabis operator Skymint is under the control of a receiver, according to Crain’s Detroit Business.

A lawsuit filed at the Ingham County Circuit Court in Lansing alleges the company owes more than $127 million to Canadian investment firm Tropics LP, a subsidiary of Calgary-based Sundial Growers Inc.’s SNDL investment firm SunStream Bancorp Inc, which announced in Nov 2022 that it closed a $6.25M senior secured term loan to SKYMINT Brands.

Tropics LP loaned Green Peak Innovations Inc. (Skymint's parent company) $70 million in September 2021 toward the acquisition of 13 dispensaries across the state. However, Green Peak “did not meet its new loan obligation in June 2022 after failing to raise an additional $15 million in new funding,” per the Green Market Report.

In addition, New York-based cannabis investment firm Merida Capital Holdings also sued Green Peak alleging misrepresentation of financials and mismanagement, in Oakland County Circuit Court.

Cannabis Flower Prices Out Of Control In The State

Michigan's market saturation affects the wholesale cost of weed. In a calendar year (January 2022 and January 2023), the cost of one ounce of cannabis flower dropped 53.6%, per 420 Intel.

Tyler Dutcher, the founder of Vivid Farms in Barryton, says this saturation has impacted the frequency of his company restocks with other brands coming online in the last year.

"The markets dropped 80 to 90%. Since that, they're finding themselves trying to stay above water in this time,” he said. However, Michigan cannabis sales climbed 9% in December as compared to November and increased 32% from a year ago to a record $221.7 million.

In related news, the cannabis industry in the state recently narrowly avoided a sales stoppage of 85% of its licensed operators due to a miscommunication with its private tracking system service provider, Florida-based METRC.

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