North American cannabis operator TerrAscend on Wednesday won conditional approval to list on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) – a first for a company with plant-touching operations in the U.S., where marijuana remains federally illegal.
The TSX – Canada’s largest stock exchange and the third-largest in North America – must still give the company final approval, TerrAscend said in a news release.
If the exchange does sign off, it could pave the way for other U.S. multistate operators to tap into a larger pool of investors on the TSX.
To meet the requirements of the exchange, TerrAscend is restructuring to segregate its Canadian operations and interests from its U.S. facilities through the creation of a new entity, TerrAscend Growth.
Besides Canada, TerrAscend operates in California, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
The company also recently announced it entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Peninsula Alternative Health, a medical marijuana dispensary in Maryland, for total consideration of $22.1 million.
“I would like to express my sincere appreciation to the teams at the TSX, TerrAscend and Cassels for working so hard to get us to this point,” Jason Wild, the company’s executive chai, said in a statement.
Cassels, a Toronto-based law firm, assisted TerrAscend on its restructure.
Final approval of the TSX listing is subject to TerrAscend meeting certain customary conditions required by the exchange.
The company said it would issue a news release once the TSX confirms the date that Ascend shares will commence trading on the exchange.
“I speak for everyone at TerrAscend when I say we are honored to be in the position to blaze this trail for the industry,” Wild said.
“We have an exciting future ahead of us and we can’t wait to share the TerrAscend story with the larger audience of participants that this listing brings.”
TerrAscend (TER) was trading Wednesday afternoon at 2.25 Canadian dollars ($1.71) on the Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE).
As part of its plans, the company has requested to voluntarily delist from the CSE, according to the release.
TerrAscend also trades as TRSSF on the U.S. over-the-counter markets.
Earlier Wednesday, the company announced plans to raise $15 million through two private placements.
Kate Robertson can be reached at kate.robertson@mjbizdaily.com.