Team Of BIPOC Women Launch $50M Fund For Social Equity In Cannabis

Despite efforts to repair the damage caused by the War on Drugs and its disproportionately negative impact on BIPOC communities, less than 10% of cannabis business owners are BIPOC. However, one group is seeking to change that.

The People’s Group (TPG), led by Christine De La Rosa, has launched a $50 million nationwide fund. The fund will invest in BIPOC and women-led cannabis businesses with the goal of breaking the pattern of oppression and creating a representative future for the growing industry.

TPG is led, directed and advised by BIPOC women, queer people, the differently-abled, veterans and people with chronic illness as a catalyst for community empowerment. The fund will draw attention to the lack of social equity, capital and investment opportunities within the field. It also will work toward eliminating the barriers of prosperity and unlocking efficient pathways to profitability.

The fund’s mission is to deploy its total capital by 2024. This allows for advisory, management services and enhanced technology to be distributed across diverse and competitive companies over the course of the next 10 years.

“Minority-owned cannabis businesses lack access to the capital, business spaces and technical support they need to succeed. I experienced this first hand when I started my first cannabis business in 2016," De La Rosa told Benzinga. "Our fund’s objective is to supply the resources they need to be profitable, creating a more diverse and equitable cannabis industry.”