EXCLUSIVE: Meet CBX Stock Exchange, The New Switzerland-Based Cannabis Commodities Trading Platform

Cannabis patient and visionary Jonas Duclos and co-founder Kevin Goetelen have launched the CBX Stock Exchange (CBX), a B2B trading platform for the sale and purchase of raw materials and products derived from hemp and cannabis.

CBX evolved from an earlier iteration of the platform, HempBroker420, started by the founders in 2019. The founders in 2017 also created JBK Research, which manufactures and sells cannabidiol-based products under the brand name CBD420.

The Backstory

Jonas’ expertise in the cannabis industry is the result of his personal experience. Having grappled with a rare genetic skin disease called PRP as a teenager, Jonas later discovered that cannabis provided the most effective relief for the pain caused by the condition.

In 2019, the founders’ vision for HempBroker420 was to establish a marketplace to gather producers and distributors encountered through business dealings with CBD420. At the time, HempBroker420 was the first of its kind to offer a secure B2B network for cannabis derivatives traders.

Within 18 months of operating in stealth mode and without any investment in marketing, HempBroker420 had attracted over 2500 members and generated more than €300,000 ($326,000) of net profit. By the end of 2021, member numbers had risen to almost 4,000. 

The considerable demand experienced by the platform led the founders to realize the immense gap in the market for a B2B marketplace to service cannabis ecosystem players, one that would engender a level of trust and transparency urgently needed from “seed to shelf.”

Commenting on the launch, Duclos told Benzinga, "With the European cannabis industry expected to reach billions in the coming years it’s unbelievable there is no regulation in place to oversee the market. Europe has a reputation for protecting its citizens, but when it comes to cannabis, it’s lagging behind. The industry has been operating blindly for too long without the necessary infrastructure, quality controls and assurances in place and this needs to change.”

How CBX Works

CBX Stock Exchange offers a trusted, transparent and structured marketplace for buyers and sellers with the ultimate aim of facilitating the safe development of cannabis products and protecting the safety of the end-user. A recent investigation by the Swiss Association of Cantonal Chemists into CBD products found 85% were found to be non-compliant with the association describing the situation as “disastrous.”

CBX offers trading in flowers, hemp biomass, distillates and isolates, tinctures, a combination of cannabis extractions with various oils, such as hemp seed oil and coconut oil. The platform connects cannabis producers with a range of industries from wellness to beauty on the procurement side.

In the absence of universal norms around the purchase and sale of cannabis products, CBX consulted with the Swiss Health Authority and developed its own standards.

Through a standard due diligence process, all applicants are fully vetted before becoming registered members of the CBX community. They must meet stringent criteria to achieve a CBX Certification level and Certificate of Analysis (COA) label, which allows them to trade on the platform.

The certification is awarded upon receipt and verification of all required documentation and the COA is provided after a product quality review conducted by the Lausanne-based SciTec Research laboratory. 

Accredited by the Swiss Accreditation Service, Swiss Testing Labs and Swiss Medic, SciTec specializes in the analysis of cannabis and derivatives. Each product undergoes seven quality control checks, which include analysis of THC as well as terpenes (ingredients that contribute to a product’s scent, flavor and therapeutic profile) and composition to ensure there are no harmful contaminants.

CBX facilitates transactions between buyers and sellers and members are charged a commission aligned to their membership subscription level (free, standard, premium). To further enhance and simplify the end-to-end experience, CBX is in the process of appointing a payments processing partner, as well as a dedicated agent to offer shipping services integrated within its site.

CBX is also in discussions with the Swiss and Portuguese Medical Authorities to obtain a medical license, which would enable it to open up the platform to buyers and sellers on the medical market. It expects to be granted the license in the second half of this year.

Photo: Jonas Duclos by Lakeside Media.