Toronto-based Jacob Securities Inc. and Jacob Capital Management Inc. on Tuesday announced plans for a $50-million fund to invest in the burgeoning marijuana sector.
Jacob Capital Management Cannabis Fund will “target both private and public investments across the global cannabis value chain” with a particular focus on the United States and Canada, where the drug is increasingly becoming legalized for both medicinal and recreational use, the firms say in their announcement.
The companies have selected two senior advisors for the fund: Cheryl Shuman, CEO of a PR and marketing firm focused on the U.S. cannabis industry, Cheryl Shuman Inc.; and George Smitherman, a former Ontario health minister, who is now involved in the medical marijuana sector as both an investor and an advisor.
Jacob Securities has helped raise $90 million in equity and debt capital for businesses in the North American cannabis sector, says the firm’s president and CEO, Sasha Jacob.
“Working in concert with leaders in this sector such as Cheryl Shuman and George Smitherman, we intend to secure the right type of opportunities and resources for investors in the Jacob Capital Management Cannabis Fund,” he says.