For December’s member spotlight, we zoom in on Arizona-based Hypur, an NCIA member business who is committed to “innovation with purpose” by providing solutions for one of our industry’s major hurdles: financial compliance. Navigating the various layers of regulations with mastery is an important aspect of being transparent, legitimate, and compliant, and is an essential cornerstone of NCIA’s mission and values.
Our solution is a technology platform that provides unprecedented transparency and accountability for banks and regulators, and legitimacy, safety, and convenience for businesses and their customers. With many banks and credit unions wanting to bank these booming industries, and government bodies wanting banking services available to them, we knew the demand for our platform would be robust. Hypur represents the future of commerce for cash-intensive businesses and high-risk challenging industries. Hypur’s technology provides financial institutions with a state-of-the-art compliance platform that enables them to profitably bank these businesses – revolutionizing the businesses and the communities they operate in.
What kind of banking and payment solutions does Hypur provide?
The Hypur payment network is available to clients of our financial institutions. It gives retail locations the ability to accept cashless payments from their consumers via their mobile devices. Additionally, businesses that have accounts at Hypur partner financial institutions have the ability to conduct business-to-business transfers electronically without cash.
Can you give us some insight into the unique regulations that affect cannabis business owners in your sector?
Hypur serves financial institutions, which must comply with FinCEN guidance and all BSA/AML laws that govern their institutions. They must also comply with regulatory expectations from the FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation), OCC (Office of the Comptroller of the Currency), or NCUA (National Credit Union Association).
Why did you join NCIA?
Hypur always seeks to support leading organizations that intersect with industries of interest. We have taken note of the many important ways that NCIA is advocating for fairness, education, and awareness for the legal cannabis market, and are delighted to be a part of the NCIA community.
Happy Thanksgiving! Bountiful Benefits for NCIA Members
by Laurence Gration, Director of Development
As we head into this weekend of giving thanks, we here at NCIA are grateful for five years of advocacy, education, and community with our members. With a diverse set of services and an increasing influence on industry, legislators, and regulators across the nation, the cornerstone of our success together is firmly in place.
As the cannabis industry’s only non-profit trade association with full-time professional lobbyists working for your interests in Washington, D.C., NCIA is focused on advocacy for your business. With the strength in numbers that our nearly 1,000 member-businesses provide, we have become an influential force on Capitol Hill, with direct access to legislators and regulators.
No other business organization has done (and is doing) more for 280E reform or to fix the dangerous banking crisis than NCIA.
As a unifying voice in the industry, we are also focused on educational programming and community-building, bringing together advocates, business leaders, and policy makers to shape the industry in positive ways. NCIA also leads a Diversity and Inclusion committee, representing the interests of all under-represented groups within the industry.
But in addition to our core mission, NCIA is doing so much more for its members and the industry:
Keeping you informed: sign up for our newsletter, get video updates, and read the NCIA blog
On top of all that, NCIA members have access to a large and growing list of Member-to-Member Discounts, covering virtually every aspect of your business needs, including:
Accounting
Advertising & Marketing
Analytical Lab Testing
Infused Products
Cultivation Supply
HR & Recruiting
Software Technology
Insurance
Legal Services
Packaging
Photography
Real Estate Advising
Security
Training and Education
Travel
Wellness Products
With these discounts alone, many of our members find their NCIA membership pays for itself.
Finally, one more way we say “thanks” to our members is with gifts that let you show your pride in being part of our fast-growing community. Member pins, decals for your business window, and member certificates tell the world that you’ve invested in the long-term future of our industry.
At this time when we count our blessings, we’re grateful to you, and we hope you’ll enjoy the bounty of benefits your NCIA membership brings. With our influence in D.C. on the rise, and new programs and benefits being added all the time, it’s never been a better time to be a part of the NCIA community.
Not yet an NCIA member? Invest in your business and the future of your industry – join today!
Video Newsletter: 5 Years of Advocacy, Education, and Community
Even if you couldn’t attend NCIA’s 5th Anniversary Banquet held in Las Vegas on November 11th, you can still reflect on five years of industry advocacy, education, and community with a few of our founding members in this video presentation.
We are proud of the nearly 1,000 member-businesses that have come together as the unified voice of the cannabis industry.
Not yet a member of NCIA? It’s never too late to get involved in paving a prosperous future for the cannabis industry — join today!
Special Thanks to: Christie Lunsford, Jay and Diane Czarkowski, Brian Vicente, Ean Seeb, Erich Pearson, Étienne Fontán, Julianna Carella, Jill Lamoureux, Rob Kampia, and Steve DeAngelo.
Looking Back, Moving Forward: NCIA Honors Legislative Leader Rep. Barbara Lee
by Michelle Rutter, Government Relations Coordinator
As the year draws to a close, many of us in the cannabis industry are heading to Las Vegas for our annual trip to talk all things cannabis.
On November 11th, NCIA will be celebrating our fifth anniversary as the national voice for responsible cannabis businesses at a luxe banquet at the LiNQ Hotel + Casino, aptly themed “Looking Back, Moving Forward.” We’ll be taking a look back at how far we’ve come together in preparation for the hard work still ahead, while honoring some of the industry’s greatest champions on Capitol Hill. Las Vegas representative Dina Titus (D-NV) will give welcoming remarks to our guests.
To celebrate the progress that the cannabis industry has made, NCIA annually names a member of Congress as the recipient of our 2015 Cannabis Industry Legislative Leadership Award. Winners in prior years include true visionaries and cannabis champions Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) and Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA). Runners-up and “Honorary Legislative Leaders” of 2015 for the award this year included Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR), Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO), and Rep. Tom McClintock (R-CA). This year, NCIA has chosen to name Rep. Barbara Lee of California as the recipient of the 2015 Legislator of the Year Award.
Congresswoman Barbara Lee
Representative Barbara Lee is currently serving her ninth term in Congress as the representative for California’s 13th district. The district consists of the east San Francisco Bay Area, including Alameda, Albany, Berkeley, Oakland, Piedmont, and San Leandro. The Congresswoman is a member of the Democratic Party and is the first woman to represent her district. She currently serves on the Appropriations Committee and on the Budget Committee in the House of Representatives, in addition to being the former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus.
As a leader on issues that span both the social and economic spectrum, Representative Lee has long been a vocal supporter of the cannabis movement. In the 113th Congress, Rep. Lee sponsored the States’ Medical Marijuana Property Rights Protection Act, which would have exempted real property from civil forfeiture under the Controlled Substances Act due to medical marijuana-related conduct that is authorized by state law.
Currently, during the 114th Congress, Representative Lee has continued to be a champion for the cannabis industry on Capitol Hill. She is a co-sponsor of the Marijuana Businesses Access to Banking Act of 2015 — NCIA’s priority legislation that would end our industry’s banking crisis and provide financial services for the state-legal cannabis businesses. In addition to reintroducing her property rights protection legislation, H.R. 262, Rep. Lee is a co-sponsor of the Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Act and the Respect State Marijuana Laws Act.
Representative Lee is very familiar with the cannabis industry in her own backyard: her district is home to many NCIA members, including the nation’s longest continuously operating medical cannabis collective, Berkeley Patients Group, the internationally-recognized Oaksterdam University, and the country’s largest medical cannabis collective, Harborside Health Center.
We hope you’ll be able to join us at this historic event in Las Vegas on Wednesday, November 11th. Much has changed since NCIA formed back in 2010, and there can be no denying the monumental strides achieved since then by the cannabis industry.
Guest Post: NCIA Board Chair Reflects on the Past Five Years
by Jaime Lewis, Mountain Medicine
Dear cannabis colleagues,
I don’t know about you, but I cannot believe that it has been five years since Aaron Smith approached me with the idea of building a national trade association for the cannabis industry. Now, five years later, the National Cannabis Industry Association has become just that for us, and then some.
I’ve been witness to some incredible growth within the cannabis industry since NCIA was established in 2010. With the passage of full adult-use measures in four states and the continual growth of support within the halls of Congress, we have effectively been noticed as a legitimate industry that is gaining respect and recognition across the country.
It’s an amazing honor to have been involved from the very beginning – from attending the very first NCIA Lobby Day in Washington, D.C., to now serving as the chair of NCIA’s Board of Directors. All of us cannabis business leaders should be so proud to have effectively changed the conversation around our work, proving that we are a responsible and politically engaged industry. And we certainly have NCIA to thank for building a community of respected business owners and for fighting for this industry on the federal level for these past five years.
I invite you to come celebrate with me, share some laughs, and reflect on the last half-decade at Looking Back, Moving Forward – NCIA’s 5th Anniversary Celebration. Taking place on November 11 at the LiNQ Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, the night will be be an unforgettable celebration of where we’ve been and what we have to look forward to in the years ahead. I am excited to celebrate with you! Sincerely, Jaime Lewis Owner, Mountain Medicine Chair, National Cannabis Industry Association Board of Directors
Jaime Lewis, Owner of Mountain Medicine & Chair of NCIA’s Board of Directors
Jaime Lewis is the founder and owner of Mountain Medicine, a leading marijuana provider in Colorado renowned for its quality products, patient services, community engagement, and philanthropic efforts.
Since 2010, she has applied industry best practices to advance the company’s mission to provide safe and legal access to marijuana infused products and improves patient quality of life through the therapeutic benefits of marijuana. Jaime’s business management and entrepreneurial skills have contributed to Mountain Medicine success. In addition she has experience in retail and Medical marijuana dispensary in Denver, with a background in culinary arts, Jaime’s career trajectory into the medical marijuana industry began by creating compassion edibles for HIV/AIDs patients in San Francisco. In 2009, she moved to Colorado and founded Mountain Medicine, a marijuana-infused product manufacturer. She continues to oversee product development, quality control, and product consistency – the main tenants of the philosophy behind the company she founded.
Jaime is founder and Chair of the Cannabis Business Alliance (CBA), which serves as the policy voice for the cannabis industry in Colorado. CBA reflects her priority to develop sound policies and respect for the industry as it grows. She is a current board member of the National Cannabis Industry Association and has been active in campaigns to advance the interest of the industry. As a business woman and industry advocate, her participation in these organizations reflects her passion and commitment to support responsible industry policies, promote patient access, and enhance the emerging industry’s role in the economy.
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Cannabis Industry Sectors:
The Hypur payment network is available to clients of our financial institutions. It gives retail locations the ability to accept cashless payments from their consumers via their mobile devices. Additionally, businesses that have accounts at Hypur partner financial institutions have the ability to conduct business-to-business transfers electronically without cash.
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