Cannabis and Hemp Business Banking

Our roots have a strong foundation in agricultural lending. For more than 100 years, we've helped family farms and suppliers grow their businesses.

When the Farm Bill passed in 2018, our team quickly built a robust hemp banking program and a best-in-class, internal compliance program to serve hemp and CBD companies and help them succeed in this rapidly expanding industry.

Cannabis banking refers to the range of financial services offered to cannabis-related businesses, including ancillary businesses, testing laboratories, hemp growers and device manufacturers. It involves providing and maintaining business accounts, processing financial transactions, approving loans and extending credit to help these businesses manage their finances and operations.

We're hemp banking and cannabis banking advocates that understand the inherent challenges of establishing a financial relationship in the hemp and CBD industry. With this in mind, we've built a knowledgeable team of product and industry experts to make the establishment of your relationship as simple and quick as possible. Normal bank approval applies to these products and services, and there is a $150 monthly compliance fee associated with hemp or CBD relationships.

Yes. First Citizens is a cannabis-friendly bank in pursuit of maintaining and encouraging active relationships with cannabis-related and hemp-related businesses. We extend banking services to a variety of cannabis-related and hemp-related businesses and conduct thorough due diligence to ensure these businesses operate within the bounds of local laws and regulations. Normal bank approval applies to these products and services, and there is a $150 monthly compliance fee associated with hemp or CBD relationships.

Per the 2018 Farm Bill, hemp is "the plant Cannabis sativa L. and any part of that plant, including the seeds thereof and all derivatives, extracts, cannabinoids, isomers, acids, salts, and salts of isomers, whether growing or not, with a delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol concentration of not more than 0.3% on a dry weight basis."

• Cannabis and hemp banking specialists that know your industry
• A powerful combination of lending and merchant services
• Transparent and fair pricing that can scale with your business growth
• A large, national hemp-friendly bank that offers a full suite of banking products and services to meet your needs
• The support of an expansive branch network
• A robust digital platform for convenient account management and quick access to services
• A bank with an experienced team that knows your industry and can help protect your best interests
• Best-in-class compliance and regulatory knowledge

Hemp has been around for centuries and was first introduced in America in the early 1600s as an industrial crop, where it was used for products such as paper and rope. By the early 20th century, the American hemp industry began to decline as manufacturers began to import synthetic fibers, which decreased the demand for high-quality domestic hemp.

In addition, the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937 was enacted, which hindered domestic farmers by adding a $100 transfer tax on sales. During World War II, the federal government temporarily lifted the Marijuana Tax Act and launched a pro-hemp campaign to encourage American farmers to grow hemp, which was used to produce products like rope for the US Navy.

In 1970, the government passed the Controlled Substances Act, which regulated all cannabis, including hemp. With the passage of the 2014 Farm Bill, states implemented laws to allow the US Department of Agriculture and universities to grow hemp for research or pilot programs. With the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, hemp was removed from the Controlled Substances Act and farmers were legally able to grow hemp.

Hemp and marijuana both come from the same species, Cannabis sativa. Hemp, however, is defined as a Cannabis plant that contains 0.3% or less THC—whereas marijuana contains more. The federal government has legalized hemp under the 2018 Farm Bill. However, marijuana remains illegal at the federal level.

First Citizens extends a full spectrum of cannabis-related banking solutions to our cannabis and hemp partners across all 50 states throughout the US. Along with a growing list of seasoned partnerships serving the industry, we're interested in fostering growing relationships with many businesses, including but not limited to:

• Hemp processors, manufacturers and distributors
• Equipment manufacturers of plant-touching devices
• Secondary processors
• Hemp farmers and growers
• Fertilizer and horticulture agriscience businesses
• Ancillary businesses
• Cannabis-related testing laboratories
• Marketing firms
• Professional services, including payroll, CPAs, attorneys and more
• Business services
• Software providers
• Hemp retailers