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Cryptocurrency companies and legal marijuana businesses now routinely pay thousands a month for access to basic banking services, which some think reflects their lack of other options more than their real risks.
April 10 -
Banks are facing enhanced scrutiny from examiners, causing them to sever ties with businesses they view as high-risk, but regulators are also pressuring them not to close those accounts, fearing financial disenfranchisement.
November 17 -
In a speech Tuesday, the director of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network will argue that recent guidance for banks regarding the marijuana industry is working as intended. But it's unclear whether banks' concerns about the risks have been addressed.
August 11
MBank in Gresham, Ore., has decided to cease providing banking services to the marijuana industry, just one year after it began serving such clients.
The bank said it is giving its 70 cannabis industry clients 60 days' notice that it will no longer provide them with banking services, according to an April 10 press release. The bank attributed the decision to its size and the compliance work required to serve the high-risk industry.
"The cost of compliance was not something a small community bank like ours could handle and properly serve the cannabis-related industry," MBank president and chief executive told American Banker. "We very much plan to be an active resource for the industry, especially with the State of Oregon as they move through writing the rules for recreational legalization."
Starting in July, possession, use and cultivation of marijuana will be legal in Oregon for adults over the age of 21. Medical marijuana was already legal in Oregon, and in neighboring Washington State, recreational marijuana was voted into law in 2012.
MBank continues to work with regulators "on significant issues," Baker said. The $163 million-asset bank
