????上周五，美國(guó)政府頒布新規(guī)定，允許銀行與持有執(zhí)照的大麻公司合作。由于法律界定的模糊，銀行一直對(duì)向蓬勃發(fā)展的大麻產(chǎn)業(yè)提供服務(wù)持謹(jǐn)慎態(tài)度。大麻在科羅拉多州和華盛頓州被允許用于休閑放松；而在另外18個(gè)州，大麻可在醫(yī)學(xué)領(lǐng)域使用。

????新法案要求銀行辨別與大麻有關(guān)的一切可疑交易，包括向兒童出售大麻以及非法走私大麻。

????大麻公司老板一直在苦苦尋求銀行的金融服務(wù)，而且常常不得不使用現(xiàn)金。這個(gè)消息對(duì)于他們而言無(wú)疑是最動(dòng)聽的音樂(lè)。美國(guó)大麻行業(yè)協(xié)會(huì)（National Cannabis Industry Association）執(zhí)行董事上個(gè)月曾經(jīng)在《紐約時(shí)報(bào)》（New York Times）的一篇報(bào)道中稱，銀行服務(wù)是“合法的大麻產(chǎn)業(yè)當(dāng)今最迫切的需求”。

????然而，新法案并未明確授權(quán)銀行與大麻公司開展業(yè)務(wù)往來(lái)。畢竟在聯(lián)邦法律下，大麻仍屬于非法物品。有鑒于此，大麻公司很可能要繼續(xù)為尋找銀行而煩惱了。

????Secondmarket首席執(zhí)行官巴里?希爾伯特是一名熱心的比特幣投資商，他表示，他相信銀行對(duì)大麻公司的立場(chǎng)不會(huì)因?yàn)檫@個(gè)消息而改變。他預(yù)測(cè)，比特幣才會(huì)是大麻交易中的先行者。

????的確，許多大麻公司都在研究如何使用比特幣平臺(tái)來(lái)代替?zhèn)鹘y(tǒng)的銀行服務(wù)。向Weedmaps這類大麻公司投資的私人股本公司Ghost Group政策顧問(wèn)亞倫?休斯頓說(shuō)：“這一天肯定不會(huì)遙遠(yuǎn)。無(wú)論是大麻還是其他行業(yè)，未來(lái)都系于比特幣一身。”他說(shuō)，大麻產(chǎn)業(yè)的許多人都開始對(duì)比特幣產(chǎn)生興趣，因?yàn)槠渌晒┻x擇的金融服務(wù)很少，但他還沒(méi)聽說(shuō)有哪家公司現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)開始使用比特幣。這種神秘的貨幣復(fù)雜難懂，一般小公司的業(yè)主難以采用。

????比特幣支付公司Bitpay首席執(zhí)行官托尼?加里皮表示，大麻沒(méi)有獲得聯(lián)邦法律的許可之前，他的公司絕不允許相關(guān)業(yè)務(wù)通過(guò)其平臺(tái)交易。他說(shuō)，一旦大麻獲得許可，比特幣就會(huì)成為非常劃算的交易方式，比包括信用卡、現(xiàn)金在內(nèi)的其他銀行支付手段都更為廉價(jià)。不僅是大麻產(chǎn)業(yè)，對(duì)所有行業(yè)來(lái)說(shuō)，比特幣交易的詐騙和盜竊風(fēng)險(xiǎn)都要更低。

????與此同時(shí)，休斯頓預(yù)測(cè)大麻公司更有可能會(huì)涌向銀行。他表示，許多Weedmaps的客戶都是當(dāng)?shù)氐男⌒退幏浚麄冎械拇蠖鄶?shù)都與美國(guó)銀行（Bank of America）和美聯(lián)銀行（Wachovia）這類大型銀行公開合作。“他們完全處于銀行交易的最前線。對(duì)他們來(lái)說(shuō)，用什么貨幣沒(méi)有區(qū)別，但他們得告訴銀行他們究竟在做什么。”不過(guò)即便是這些與銀行有業(yè)務(wù)往來(lái)的公司，也有些找了四五家才碰到愿意合作的銀行，經(jīng)歷堪稱慘痛。

????休斯頓相信，上周的新聞是主流投資者邁向大麻產(chǎn)業(yè)的重大一步。他表示，去年四月，ArcViewInvestor Network大麻公司投資研討會(huì)只吸引到25名投資者。而最近的一次會(huì)議則已經(jīng)有150名投資者參與。甚至連公眾人物也開始采取行動(dòng)：紐約州的議員史蒂夫?卡茨計(jì)劃將自己的100萬(wàn)美元投入涉及大麻業(yè)務(wù)的公司。

????休斯頓說(shuō)：“銀行家也許會(huì)說(shuō)（他們不會(huì)與大麻公司合作），但事實(shí)是，市場(chǎng)有著這樣的趨勢(shì)，而那些人還活在過(guò)去。”他這種觀點(diǎn)顯然是偏見(jiàn)。Ghost Group的最大投資項(xiàng)目Weedmaps簡(jiǎn)直就像野草一般在瘋狂生長(zhǎng)，去年的收入達(dá)到了3,000萬(wàn)美元。（財(cái)富中文網(wǎng)）

????譯者：嚴(yán)匡正

????

????Late Friday the U.S. government released new rules that allow banks to work with licensed marijuana businesses. Banks have been reticent to provide services to companies in the burgeoning marijuana industry because the legality is murky. Marijuana is legal for recreational use in Colorado and Washington, and for medicinal use in 18 other states.

????The new guidance asks banks to identify any suspicious transactions related to marijuana, including distribution to children, and illegal trafficking.

????The news is music to the ears of marijuana business owners, who have struggled to find banking options and often resort to using cash. In a New York Times article last month, the executive director of the National Cannabis Industry Association said banking was "the most urgent issue facing the legal cannabis industry today."

????But the new guidance doesn't explicitly authorize banks to do business with marijuana companies. After all, marijuana is still illegal under federal law. Because of this, marijuana companies are likely to continue to struggle to find banks.

????Barry Silbert, CEO of Secondmarket and avid Bitcoin investor, said he believes the news won't change banks' stance on marijuana companies. He predicted that Bitcoin processors would be the first movers in this space.

????Indeed, plenty of marijuana companies are looking into how they might use the Bitcoin platform in lieu of traditional banks. "It is definitely not too far in the future," says Aaron Houston, policy advisor for Ghost Group, a private equity firm which invests in marijuana companies likeWeedmaps. "The future is now with respect to Bitcoin, regardless of marijuana or any business." He said plenty of people in the industry are interested in Bitcoin given the dearth of other banking options, but did not know of any companies currently using Bitcoin. The crypto-currency is complicated for the average small business owner to implement.

????Tony Gallippi, CEO of Bitcoin payments company Bitpay, said his company won't allow marijuana on its platform until it is legal on a federal level. Once that happens, he says, Bitcoin will be a lower cost option for doing business than other forms of payment offered by a bank, including credit cards or cash. It also offers a lower risk of fraud and theft for any business, not just marijuana, he says.

????In the meantime, Houston predicts marijuana companies are more likely to flock to banks. He said many of Weedmap's clients, which are mostly small, local dispensaries, are openly working with major banks like Bank of America (BAC) and Wachovia (WFC). "They are completely up front with the banks," he says. "There is no category for them, but they're telling their bankers exactly what they're doing." But even those businesses with banks have horror stories about going to four different banks before finding one that would work with them.

????Houston believes last week's news is a big step toward mainstream investors getting involved in the marijuana business. Last April, ArcView Investor Network pitch events, which are focused on marijuana companies, only pulled around 25 investors, Houston says. The latest one had 150 investors in attendance. Even public figures are getting in on the action: New York State Assemblyman Steve Katz is planning to invest $10 million of his own money into marijuana-related companies.

????"The bankers might be saying (they won't work with marijuana companies), but the fact is the market is moving in one direction and those guys are living in the past," Houston says. He's obviously biased. Ghost Group's biggest investment, Weedmaps, has been growing like a, uh… weed, hitting $30 million in revenue last year.