The floodgates have already opened on this brand new industry and asset class after decades of bad press, misleading research claims and criminalisation of the plant. Across the globe, and in the Americas, Europe and Australasia, markets are opening up and legislation is rapidly evolving for both cannabis and hemp cultivation and adjacent industries that will grow.
From CBD extracts to a variety of textiles and industrial products, from edibles, beverages, and pet foods to cosmetics, creams and lotions; an array of new innovations and disruptive trends are challenging early cannabis investors to keep up with the exponential growth of this rapidly evolving industry.
South Africa is currently behind the curve in terms of developing this sector but has an incredibly rich history and understanding of the cultivation of indigenous landrace varietals. African varietals are in demand across the globe. At the same time, much can be learned from the more developed markets in order to avoid many mistakes in the rollout of different sectors within the industry.
The South African government has shown a strong commitment to driving growth in the Cannabis and Hemp industries. Following the legalisation of cannabis for private use and for licensed cultivation of medicinal cannabis in 2018, the industry is showing rapid development, despite a lack of available funding (banks are reluctant lenders in the current legislative environment).
At his recent State of the Nation address, President Cyril Ramaphosa spoke of the government’s strong commitment to providing legislative and financial support to enable SA to be a significant player in the Cannabis industry and drive job creation, and export opportunities and be a significant contributor to tax collections.
It is against this backdrop that our team has the confidence that we can play a major role in driving industry growth through the provision of funding and management expertise to build a portfolio of excellent businesses in the industry.
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Grovest is the largest administrator of small cap funds in South Africa, with assets under administration of R3,5 billion. Initially setup as a Section 12J VCC, SilverLeaf Investments is the first cannabis fund in South Africa.