SeriousTraders Monthly Newsletter February 2019

SeriousTradersSpotlight Company

The Green Organic Dutchman (TSX: TGOD) (OTC: TGODF)

chart

The Green Organic Dutchman (TSX: TGOD) (OTC: TGODF), whose principal location is in Hamilton, Ontario, produces farm grown, organic, pesticide-free medical cannabis in small batches using all natural, organic craft growing principles. TGOD is licensed under the Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations (ACMPR) to cultivate medical cannabis. The company carries out its principal activities producing cannabis pursuant to the provisions of the ACMPR and the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (Canada).

Committed to becoming the global leader in delivering organic cannabis solutions that enhance people's lives, TGOD consistently adheres to the highest levels of excellence. Its world-class management team includes a proven group of leaders with outstanding executive and operational experience specific to consumer packaged goods, consumer products, cannabis and finance industries.

Full Profile & Latest News

SeriousTradersClient Partners

Black Iron Inc. (TSX: BKI) (OTC: BKIRF) (GR: BIN)

chart

Black Iron Inc. (TSX: BKI) (OTC: BKIRF) (GR: BIN) is a Canadian iron ore exploration and development company advancing to production its wholly owned Shymanivske Iron Ore Project, located in Krivyi Rih, Ukraine. Black Iron's Shymanivske project is situated in the southern part of the historic KrivBass iron ore mining district, a highly developed iron ore mining region with well-established infrastructure and nearby skilled labor forces. Surrounded by seven producing iron ore mines, the Shymanivske project will produce an ultra-high-grade, 68-percent iron ore concentrate with few impurities at very low cost.

The Market

Iron ore concentrates are one of the essential raw materials used by the steel industry to either make sinter or highly valued pellets. Black Iron's concentrate can be used in either application and is an ideal source to make pellets since it does not need to be ground finer and contains very few impurities. According to the CRU Group, an internationally recognized top global business intelligence provider and consultancy specializing in commodities, there is a growing global shortage of pellet feed resulting in a supply/demand gap of 133Mt against the current base of approximately 400Mt consumed by 2035. According to a recent report issued by Zion Market Research, the global iron ore pellets market was valued at around US$25.22 billion in 2017 and is expected to reach US$50.12 billion by 2024, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.1 percent between 2018 and 2024 (http://nnw.fm/2vaDR).

Countries around the world, most notably China (http://nnw.fm/Je8gs), have instituted regulatory changes to curb polluting emissions from steel mills through numerous methods, including encouraging a shift to higher grade iron feed products such as pellets as less coal needs to be burnt per ton of steel produced.

Shymanivske Project

Black Iron's Shymanivske's project, which is expected to produce ultra-high-grade 68 percent iron content pellet feed iron concentrate, is generating significant interest from steel mills and global commodity trading houses. Use of ultra-high-grade 68-percent iron content product in the production of steel is a value-added product to customers since it increases blast furnace productivity and reduces greenhouse gas emissions generated per ton of steel produced.

The project's proximity to rail lines (1 mile), electrical power (20 miles), sea ports (140 to 260 miles) and a skilled workforce (6 miles) significantly reduces the up-front construction costs and allows for the mine to be built in a phased approach. The Shymanivske project has been ranked by the CRU Group in the lowest position of the business cost curve for pellet feed projects currently under development and as the second lowest in capital intensity (construction capital divided by annual production) within CRU Group's extensive database (http://nnw.fm/3MXsT). This low-cost position makes the project economics very robust to any shocks in iron ore price while providing a very high return at current and forecast prices.

Black Iron continues to advance its project on several fronts including construction funding and off-take agreements (http://nnw.fm/tQ4g2). Discussions with Ukraine's Ministry of Defense to transfer a parcel of land required by the company for location of its processing plant, waste rock and tailings are nearing finalization, as are discussions with the Kryviy Rih City Council to lease a portion of the surface rights currently under that body's control. The recent engagement of Ivan Markovich as Black Iron's Vice President of Government and Community Relations will assist the company in these endeavors given his extensive network of relationships with senior Ukraine government officials.

The Shymanivske project holds a mining allotment permit for a large iron ore deposit with a NI 43-101 compliant resource estimated to contain 646 Mt (million tons) Measured and Indicated mineral resources, consisting of 355 Mt Measured mineral resources grading 31.6% total iron and 18.8% magnetic iron, and Indicated mineral resources of 290 Mt grading 31.1% total iron and 17.9% magnetic iron, using a cut-off grade of 10% magnetic iron. Additionally, there are 188 Mt of Inferred mineral resources grading 30.1% total iron and 18.4% magnetic iron.

Full mineral resource details and project economics can be found in the NI 43-101 compliant technical report entitled "Preliminary Economic Assessment of the Re-scoped Shymanivske Iron Ore Deposit" effective November 21, 2017, under the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

Management

Black Iron's management and board of directors is stacked with experts well-versed in successfully building and operating iron ore projects. CEO Matt Simpson, P.Eng. is the former general manager of Mining for Rio Tinto's Iron Core Company of Canada and worked for Hatch designing global metallurgical refineries. He is also a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101. Chairman Bruce Humphrey is the former COO of GoldCorp and former chairman of Consolidated Thompson Iron Ore mines which was sold to Cliff's resources for US$4.9 billion.

Les Kwasik, COO, has over 40 years of hands-on experience building and operating mines globally with companies such as INCO (VALE) and Xstrata (Glencore). Paul Bozoki, CFO, is the former CFO of CD Capital Partners, operating in the Ukraine. Bill Hart, senior vice president of corporate development, has over 30 years of experience selling iron ore while working for Rio Tinto, Cliffs Natural Resources and most recently Roy Hill Holdings Ltd. Ivan Markovich was recently engaged in the capacity of Black Iron's vice president of Government and Community Relations to leverage his extensive network of relationships with senior Ukraine government officials.

Cannabis Strategic Ventures, Inc. (NUGS)

chart

Cannabis Strategic Ventures, Inc. (NUGS), headquartered in Los Angeles, California, is focused on supporting entrepreneurial growth within the fast-growing legal cannabis sector. Through a selective portfolio of subsidiaries, Cannabis Strategic Ventures offers outsourced personnel solutions tailor-made to match the growth dynamics of cannabis cultivators, manufacturers, dispensaries and other cannabis marketplace participants. The company also pursues investment opportunities in the areas of real estate, cultivation, extraction, distribution, packaging, dispensary operations, and branded products within the cannabis space.

The legalization of adult-use sales in California is expected to create nearly 99,000 cannabis industry jobs in the state by 2021, representing about a third of all cannabis jobs nationwide, and 146,000 jobs overall when indirect and induced efforts are considered, according to Arcview Market Research. By 2021, direct cannabis industry employment will top 291,500 FTE jobs, with a total employment effect of nearly 414,000 FTEs across all legal cannabis states, according to the report.

Cannabis Strategic Ventures believes its staffing capabilities will be in a similar state of demand. The company in April 2018 completed a definitive agreement to acquire Worldwide Staffing Group, Inc., which booked approximately $1.5 million in revenues in 2017.

Worldwide will operate within Cannabis Strategic Ventures as an independent and separate wholly owned subsidiary providing strictly non-cannabis related employment and staffing services. As Worldwide continues to expand its operations in general clerical and administrative, marketing, accounting, and other verticals, Cannabis Strategic Ventures will leverage the subsidiary's expertise to expand its business operations further into the cannabis staffing arena, with an emphasis on the California markets.

Cannabis Strategic Ventures' BudHire™ subsidiary is an outsourced employment service specifically designed to meet the needs of growing cannabis-related business operations, utilizes a proven recruiting formula to match the most qualified candidates to a broad spectrum of cannabis-related jobs. Under the BudHire™ brand, Cannabis Strategic Ventures offers temporary, seasonal, permanent staffing solutions, as well as professional employment organization services and human resources consulting to the cannabis industry.

Cannabis Strategic Ventures portfolio also includes Pure Applied Sciences Inc. and its brand "PureOrganix™," a line of high quality concentrate, organic and pure cannabis oils that conform with Current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP) and meet FDA guidelines for Active Pharmaceuticals Products (API). The acquisition includes all intellectual properties, including formulations and technologies, and related accessories of Pure Applied Sciences.

Cannabis Strategic Ventures Pure Applied Sciences subsidiary, has a cannabis concentrate extraction services agreement with CP Logistics LLC ("CPL"), a wholly owned U.S. subsidiary of Sunniva Inc. (CSE:SNN) (OTCQX:SNNVF). Under this agreement, CPL will perform white label services producing high quality, ultra-purified cannabis extracts out of its Sun-Oil Facility in Cathedral City, California, for Pure Applied Sciences under the Pure Organix brand name.

The management team at Cannabis Strategic Ventures believes there is incredible opportunity to carve-out and control specific industry niches, to create unique cannabis consumer branded products, and to expand into other sub-sectors of the cannabis marketplace.

Canopy Rivers Inc. (TSX.V: RIV) (OTC: CNPOF)

chart

Canopy Rivers Inc. (TSX.V: RIV) (OTC: CNPOF) is the venture capital investment platform of Canopy Growth Corporation (TSX: WEED, NYSE: CGC).

Canopy Rivers is a unique investment and operating platform structured to pursue investment opportunities in the emerging global cannabis sector. Canopy Rivers collaborates with Canopy Growth to identify strategic counterparties seeking financial and/or operating support. Headquartered in Toronto, Canada, Canopy Rivers has developed an ecosystem of complementary cannabis operating companies operating throughout the cannabis value chain.

Canopy Rivers, in collaboration with Canopy Growth, has established a diverse portfolio of cannabis industry investments that includes domestic and international companies, licensed producers, late-stage licensed producer applicants, pharmaceutical formulators, brand developers and distributors, retail networks, and technology and media platforms. Investments are customized for each counterparty and include a balanced mix of equity, debt, royalty and profit-sharing agreements.

Canopy Rivers' expanding portfolio includes:

  • Agripharm Corp. (private) is an ACMPR licensed producer, acquired by Canopy Growth in January 2017. In November 2017 Agripharm completed a joint venture with globally recognized partners Green House Seeds and Organa Brands. Canopy Growth has sublicensed proprietary technology, trademarks, genetics, know-how and other intellectual property from Agripharm to distribute the suite of Green House and Organa Brands products across the country, when permissible.
  • CanapaR Corp. (private) owns 80% of CanapaR Italy, a Sicily-based company focused on developing and commercializing Italy's local hemp cultivation industry through its partnership with the renowned Department of Agriculture at the University of Catania and its rapidly building extraction capabilities for the production of organic CBD oil. CanapaR Italy's outsource farming model with local Sicilian farmers and its university partnership will provide it with a low-cost source of organic CBD oil, which is increasingly used as an input into new commercial products in the growing health and wellness industries.
  • Civilized Worldwide Inc. (private), is a media and lifestyle brand with offices in New Brunswick and California that embraces and highlights modern cannabis culture. Civilized aims to engage the millions of productive, motivated people who choose to enjoy cannabis responsibly as part of their lifestyle. Reaching 2+ million unique visitors per month, North America-wide, Civilized produces engaging content for and about people who enjoy cannabis responsibly.
  • James E. Wagner Cultivation Ltd. (TSXV:JWCA) was founded in 2007 by third generation agricultural and cannabis cultivators. JWC is the first entirely aeroponic producer of cannabis in Canada, and its patent-pending aeroponic production technology, called GrowthStormTM, allows for perpetual harvesting and improved yields. The company was issued a license to cultivate from Health Canada in January 2017 and a subsequent sales license in March 2018.
  • LiveWell Foods Canada Inc. (TSXV:LVWL) was established in 1993 as a nutritional lifestyle company, and operates in the production of fresh produce and food technology. The company's O-Hemp division distributes bulk and retail hemp products through its existing channel partners. LiveWell entered into a strategic agreement with Canopy Rivers and Canopy Growth in April 2018.
  • PharmHouse (private) is a joint venture between Canopy Rivers and the principals and operators of leading North American greenhouse produce companies. PharmHouse has arranged to acquire a newly built 1.3-million-square-foot greenhouse located in Leamington, Ontario.
  • Radicle Cannabis Inc. (private) is an ACMPR-licensed cannabis company based in Hamilton, Ontario backed by a management team that brings extensive experience in regulated industries, retail distribution, tobacco and pharmaceutical development, as well as Award-winning cannabis horticulturist breeders and medical professionals.
  • Solo Growth (TSXV:ALZ) is a new cannabis retail concept that will operate locations under the name "YSS by Solo," relying on the expertise of a management team comprised of founding shareholders, senior officers and board members of Solo Liquor Stores Ltd., a leading Canadian liquor retailer. Solo Growth was established through a recapitalization of Aldershot Resources Ltd.'s corporate structure that will allow the company to execute a new retail-focused cannabis business strategy.
  • Spot Therapeutics Inc. (private) is an applicant that was acquired by Canopy Growth in August 2017 to solidify its Maritimes expansion strategy and less than four weeks later Canopy Growth signed a supply MOU with the New Brunswick government. Canopy Rivers purchased the property and entered into a long-term lease and committed funding agreement with Canopy Growth.
  • TerrAscend Corp. (CSE:TER) cultivates high-quality cannabis in an indoor hydroponic facility, backed by a strategic investor boasting a strong background in the pharmaceutical space and an extensive portfolio of specialty pharma assets.
  • Vert Mirabel (private) is a joint venture that was established in December 2017 between Canopy Rivers, Canopy Growth, and Les Serres Stephane Bertrand. Bertrand is a large-scale greenhouse operator located in Mirabel, Quebec, and the largest grower of pink tomatoes in the country. With guidance and assistance from Canopy Growth, the greenhouse has been upgraded and retrofitted for cannabis production and was licensed by Health Canada in May 2018.

As the company's portfolio continues to develop, each constituent benefits from opportunities to collaborate with Canopy Growth and among themselves. Canopy Rivers believes this formula results in an ideal environment for innovation, synergy and value creation for Canopy Rivers, Canopy Growth and across the entire Rivers ecosystem.

Canopy Rivers is led by an experienced team of qualified financial and technical professionals with deep industry experience and relationship networks. The company's acting CEO and chairman is Bruce Linton, CEO of Canopy Growth and founder of Tweed Marijuana.

ChineseInvestors.com (CIIX)

chart

ChineseInvestors.com (CIIX) has become a leading financial information website for Chinese-speaking investors in the United States and China. Recognizing unprecedented opportunities in the U.S. cannabis industry, CIIX is also laying the groundwork to capitalize on growing demand for cannabidiol (CBD)-based nutrition and health products.

Through its primary website, www.ChineseInvestors.com, CIIX offers a variety of investor education products and services, including real-time market commentary, analysis and educational related services in Chinese language character sets; consultative services to smaller private companies considering becoming a public company; and advertising and public relations related support services.

At the center of this initiative is the ChineseInvestors Method, a unique integration of a disciplined investing process, web-based tools, personalized instructions and support. Using this strategy, CIIX provides reliable market information to help investors make informed investment decisions and meet their individualized financial goals.

CIIX is also leveraging its financial expertise to enter into the burgeoning CBD industry, which within a few years has grown from a relatively invisible sector to a billowing market expected to reach $2.1 billion in consumer sales by 2020.

The increasing demand for CBD-based products is a catalyst for innovative business endeavors. To this accord, CIIX has established a three-year development plan to capitalize on the convergence of CBD and the nutrition and health products market in mainland China, where the benefits of CBD oil have not been widely recognized.

Under a wholesale agreement with a reputable CBD health brand, CIIX is launching the world's first online CBD health products store published in the Chinese language. The site, www.ChineseCBDoil.com, caters to a growing number of Chinese people awakening to the numerous health benefits of CBD oil for treatment of a variety of conditions such as anxiety, stress, poor sleep, Alzheimer's disease, and more. CIIX expects to launch this website at the end of January 2017, and plans to sell CBD-infused products via online and in-store.

In conjunction, CIIX's cannabis-focused "Yelp"-style mobile app is in development as a platform for Chinese people to review and discuss various cannabis products. The app will be the first marijuana social media mobile app designed for Chinese-speaking customers worldwide.

Cool Events Inc. (RNWR)

chart

Cool Events Inc. (RNWR) offers an array of unique, experiential running and obstacle events that attract thousands of participants sharing a passion for running and helping others. The company produced over 120 events in 2018 under the banner of five successful brands and has already lined up venues for 2019.

Cool Events offers the following trademarked events throughout the nation, with each dedicated to raising funds for important charities: Blacklight Run, the largest glow powder run in the world; Bubble Run, the largest daytime 5K run in the country; Foam Glow, The largest nighttime glow run in the country and the world's only glowing foam run; Blacklight Slide, the first and only close to five story high Glow-N-Dark water slide with neon glowing water; and Terrain Race, the nation's fastest growing and industry leading obstacle course race for all ages and athletic abilities.

Cool Events dedicates each of its trademarked runs and events to childhood cancer awareness, making sure this critically important issue is spread throughout the nation one runner, one race at a time. Since its first event in August 2013, the company has donated more than $1 million to Phoenix Children's Hospital/Children's Miracle Network and hundreds of thousands more to other charity partners such as Ronald McDonald House Charities of New Mexico, Make-a-Wish Foundation, Adoption Awareness, Special Olympics Massachusetts, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Kendra's Kisses, Boys and Girls Club and many more over the years.

Cool Events brings a seasoned management team with 35 years of combined experience in operating experiential events including obstacle course races, running races, experiential family events and other competitive events. The Cool Events team also offers consulting, marketing and development for outside events. The company's in-house marketing agency can handle all brand awareness for event strategy, bringing an event's vision and goals to life.

Earth Science Tech, Inc. (ETST)

chart

Earth Science Tech, Inc. (ETST) is an innovative biotechnology company operating in the fields of hemp cannabinoid (CBD), nutraceutical, pharmaceutical and medical device research and development. Earth Science Tech offers the highest purity and quality, full-spectrum, high-grade hemp CBD (cannabidiol) oil on the market. Made using the supercritical CO2 liquid extraction process, the company's CBD oil is 100 percent natural and organic. Earth Science Tech has partnered with the University of Central Oklahoma and DV Biologics Laboratory to conduct research and development projects that scientifically support and advance the healthcare benefits of its high-grade hemp CBD oil.

Earth Science Tech Inc. currently has three wholly owned subsidiaries focused on developing its role as a world leader in the CBD space and expanding its work in the pharmaceutical and medical device sectors. These subsidiaries include:

  • Earth Science Pharma, Inc., which is committed to development of low cost, noninvasive diagnostic tools, medical devices, testing processes and vaccines for sexually transmitted infections and/or diseases. Earth Science Pharmaceutical CEO and chief science officer Michel Aubé is leading the company's research and development efforts. The company's first medical device, MSN-2, is a home kit designed for the detection of STIs, such as chlamydia, from a self-obtained gynecological specimen. Earth Science Pharma is working to develop and bring to market medical devices and vaccines that meet the specific needs of women.
  • Cannabis Therapeutics, Inc. ("CTI"), which is poised to take a leadership role in the development of new, leading-edge, cannabinoid-based pharmaceutical and nutraceutical products. CTI is invested in research and development to explore and harness the medicinal power of cannabidiol. The company holds a provisional application patent for a CBD product that is focused on developing treatments for breast and ovarian cancers.
  • KannaBidioiD ("KBD") provides a wide variety of products geared toward the recreational space of cannabis. KBD's unique Kanna and CBD formulation is sold and distributed in CBD-infused edibles and vapes/e-liquids products. Kanna and CBD synergistically enhance one another, providing optimal relaxation, an uplifting sensation, enhanced focus and the added benefit of assisting with nicotine reduction therapy.

Earth Science Tech celebrated a significant, developmental year during 2017 by sharing its achievements in a condensed end-of-year report. Among the report's highlights are the implementation of a development plan for the coming three years, which includes expanding into Canada and opening new manufacturing and shipping facilities. Of particular interest is the acquisition of Canna Inno Laboratories Inc., a company headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, which gives Earth Science Tech access to Canadian government grants offered to innovators in the pharmaceutical industry. ETST has also launched development of proprietary prophylactic therapies utilizing cannabidiol (CBD) to treat various forms of breast cancer.

In October 2017, ETST announced it is cooperating with the Clinique SIDA Amité (AIDS Friendship Clinic) for a mini-clinical trial, the last trial needed before the MSN-2 device, designed for the detection of STIs, enters molecular diagnostic trials. And in November 2017, the company began pre-launch human trials on a new CBD formula to fight against the U.S. opioid epidemic. The new formula, expected to decrease cravings and the negative effects of withdrawal in addicts, is based on industrial hemp CBD mixed with a known natural ingredient proven to help increase dopamine levels. ETST's medical devices will first be launched in Vietnam, Djibouti and Morocco while the company awaits regulatory permission to enter the North American market.

The company expects to up-list to the OTCQB in early 2018, which management believes will attract well-funded institutional investors and pave the way to becoming the next billion-dollar-in-capitalization company on the OTC markets. Other highlights include completion of the company's Scientific Advisory Council with a team of recognized scientists, the launching of several CBD-infused edible products and entry into the medical devices market through collaborative partnerships.

Earth Science Tech has signed a collaborate agreement with Laboratories BNK Canada, a private laboratory that will conduct the clinical studies necessary for MSN-2 medical device-related services to meet regulatory requirements. ETST has confirmed the MSN-2 device's ability to detect chlamydia, and is working to validate similar results for gonorrhea, both highly infectious diseases that often have permanent consequences for patients. ETST will also add testing for trichomoniasis and a complete body fluid panel to detect the different serotypes of the human papillomavirus (HPV) that causes cervical cancer. These additions will help the company create sales opportunities in the global market for diagnostic testing of STDs that Transparency Market Research has indicated will grow to $108 billion by 2019.

Cannabis Therapeutics is in the development stage of two cannabinoid-based pharmaceutical drugs and three cannabinoid-based nutraceutical products targeting a variety of ailments such as anxiety, depression, triple negative breast cancer, and fatty liver disease, among others. Research into the benefits of the non-psychoactive cannabinoid molecules found in the cannabis plant is supported by ETST's International Application for Provisional Patent titled "Cannabidiol Compositions Including Mixtures and Uses Thereof," which was filed on October 8, 2015. Cannabis Thera's R&D efforts are concentrated on developing CBD-based drugs and nutraceutical products and in working to integrate the CBD molecule with existing generic drug molecules to create more efficient medications with fewer and less severe side effects. A report in Hemp Business Journal predicts the CBD consumer market will grow to $2.1 billion by 2020, while other industry experts expect an increase to almost $3 billion by 2021. A recent report by Statista projects the U.S. consumer market for cannabinoid-based pharmaceuticals could reach $50 billion by the year 2029.

The management team at Earth Science Tech brings decades of invaluable experience to the nutraceutical, dietary supplement field as well as the life sciences sectors. Nickolas S. Tabraue, who serves as the president, director and chief operating officer, is an industry veteran with extensive knowledge of supplements, retail management, customer service and sales expertise. He is joined by CEO and CSO Dr. Michel Aubé, a microbiologist whose scientific research in sexually transmitted infections, cancer and stem cell biology has been widely published in several prestigious medical journals. Sergio Castillo, chief marketing officer, and Gabriel Aviles, chief sales officer, bring a wealth of marketing and sales experience to Earth Science Tech, which is complemented by Issa El-Cheikh, Ph.D., and his 25 years in the international finance, accounting, planning and execution of large scale transactions in the public and private sectors.

Earth Science Tech's products include CBD, a natural constituent of hemp oil derived from hemp stalk and seed. EST offers CBD in the form of vitamins, minerals, herbs, botanicals, personal care products, homeopathies, functional foods and other products delivered in such forms as capsules, tablets, soft gels, chewables, liquids, creams, sprays, powders and whole herbs. Earth Science products can be found at retail stores throughout the United States and are available for purchase through the internet.

First Cobalt Corp. (TSX.V: FCC) (OTC: FTSSF)

chart

First Cobalt Corp. (TSX.V: FCC) (OTC: FTSSF), with headquarters in Canada, is a vertically integrated pure-play cobalt company with three significant North American assets. Its most prospective, flagship asset, the Iron Creek Project, is located in Idaho. Exploration of the Iron Creek Project is supported by a $9 million work program engineered to increase drilling along a mineralized strike with the hope of fast-tracking the prized asset for future production. Cobalt is a critical low-heat element of the lithium-ion batteries that fuel smartphones, laptops and a burgeoning market in electrical vehicles sought as an environmentally friendly alternative to petroleum-driven cars.

First Cobalt, which recently acquired the Iron Creek Project, is conducting a mineral resource estimate to confirm a historic estimate (non-compliant with NI 43-101) of 1.3 million tons grading 0.59 percent cobalt at the site. The company intends to publish a resource estimate by October 2018 and complete an additional 30,000 meters of drilling designed to double the mineralized zone along strike beyond the area drilled in 2017.

"First Cobalt acquired US Cobalt because we believe that Iron Creek is one of the most prospective and advanced projects in North America. With a historic resource estimate, patented land and 600 meters of underground development, Iron Creek is a prized high grade primary cobalt asset in a great mining jurisdiction," Trent Mell, president and CEO of First Cobalt, states. "Today's budget and work program is a testament to our conviction about this cobalt-copper projects' ability to be expanded and ultimately fast-tracked for future production in North America."

First Cobalt's exploration project in Idaho and an additional one in Canada's famed Cobalt Camp mining region position it well to also take advantage of conflict metal concerns surrounding the reported human rights violations in the Democratic Republic of Congo's cobalt-rich mines, which currently supply about two-thirds of the entire cobalt supply worldwide.

The company's assets in Canada also include the only permitted cobalt extraction refinery in North America capable of producing battery material, providing an integrated solution for cobalt projects. A study is underway to determine the appropriate scale and capital requirements for restarting the facility, which has been on care and maintenance since 2015.  Results of this study are expected mid-2018.

First Cobalt is the largest land owner in the Cobalt Camp in Ontario with control of over 10,000 hectares (nearly 25,000 acres) of prospective land and 50 historic cobalt/silver mines. First Cobalt's 2018 $C7 million drilling program, which includes testing different styles of mineralized areas throughout the Cobalt Camp in more than 10 past-producing mines known to contain cobalt, is a significant expansion over its 2017 exploration activities. Also ongoing is a prospecting sampling program of existing muckpiles around the camp's historic mines, trenches, pits and surrounding bedrock with a view to providing a possible early production scenario.

First Cobalt Corp. is moving quickly to leverage its potential against an economic background that estimates global consumption for refined cobalt is set to grow at an average rate of approximately 5 percent per annum for the next 10 years. The electric vehicle market, in particular, is driving this sector since more than 50 percent of the world's current production of cobalt is used in the manufacture of rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. The global lithium-ion battery market, as estimated by Zion Market Research, indicates the value at around USD $31 billion in 2016 and is expected to generate revenue of nearly USD $68 billion by end of 2022, growing at a compound annual growth rate of slightly above 17 percent.

First Cobalt is embracing innovation in the mining sector, utilizing a digital compilation of 100-plus years of mining and geological data spanning the historically prolific Cobalt Mining Camp's lifespan. First Cobalt's management team is also assessing the ability of artificial intelligence to accelerate the discovery cycle. As a member of the Mineral Exploration Research Centre (MERC) and Metal Earth Project, First Cobalt is participating in regional geophysical surveys for geological interpretation of structures controlling cobalt-silver mineralization.

The company's clear pathway to production and cash flow generation includes its mineral rich Iron Creek Project in Idaho and being one of only four fully permitted cobalt extraction refineries in Canada with significant material and processing infrastructure on site. With the price of cobalt increasing significantly and its importance in the growing battery market underpinning a strong long-term demand forecast, First Cobalt Corp. and its mining interests are primed for success.

First Cobalt Corp. President and CEO Trent Mell, a mining executive and capital markets professional with 20 years of operating and transactional experience, is joined by a team of reputable and seasoned mine builders, mine operators and deal-makers with decades of global experience in exploration, business development, geoscience, engineering and finance.

Generation Alpha, Inc. (GNAL)

chart

Generation Alpha, Inc. (GNAL) was established in 2010 as a vertically integrated technology innovator, developer, manufacturer and distributor focused on bringing products and solutions to both commercial and individual growers in the United States. Originally named Solis Tek Inc., the company changed its name to Generation Alpha in September 2018 and announced an increased focus on providing innovative and must-have cannabis products and services to a growing industry.

"Generation Alpha for us means 'new beginning'" said Generation Alpha CEO Alan Lien, when the name change was announced. "It is the new wave of how people and brands connect. We are excited with the transformation of our business strategy, our progress at our Arizona facility and the additional growth opportunities our team has identified elsewhere in the cannabis industry. While we are pleased with our innovation and progress in our Solis Tek lighting and Zelda Horticulture divisions, we believe Generation Alpha represents our philosophy of bringing the best cannabis products and services to the market. We are confident that this shift in our business strategy will create long-term shareholder value through diversified segments in the legalized cannabis industry."

The name change reflects the company's strategy to leverage business opportunities in different legalized cannabis spaces, including cultivation, processing and retail facilities. As part of that focus, Generation Alpha acts as the holding entity for a collection of companies that bring products and solutions to legal retail and commercial cannabis growers while utilizing its expertise to offer safe, quality and consistent products through its cultivation, processing, and retail facilities as well as branded products in both the medical and recreational markets. Along with its strong focus on the burgeoning cannabis market, Generational Alpha remains committed to developing and providing innovative products and services in both Solis Tek Digital Lighting, its lighting division, and Zelda Horticulture, its agricultural products division.

As part of a key piece of its cannabis focus, Generation Alpha acquired a cannabis cultivation and processing facility in Phoenix, Arizona, which is scheduled to begin operation in 2019. Currently in the design and development stage, the 70,000-square-foot facility will be one of the most technologically advanced cultivation and processing facilities in Arizona, which is a hot bed of cannabis cultivation in North America. Generation Alpha management is confident about the growth and profitability this facility provides as an essential component of its forward-thinking cannabis strategy.

Additional components of this strategy include the company's GrowPro Solutions, Inc., a nationwide cannabis cultivator and processor and a variety of Generation Alpha brands, which include the innovation, design and selling of cannabis products such as flower, oils and accessories in the legal medical and recreational markets.

The company's Zelda Horticulture division offers commercial-grade rolling tables, greenhouses, PH stabilizer and nutrient products, and other agricultural products for cultivators around the world. Zelda's custom-design cultivation options means its clients can count on increased agricultural productivity and efficiency.

Generation Alpha's Solis Tek Digital Lighting division offers an extensive line of lighting equipment and accessories, including digital ballasts, reflectors, complete lighting systems, single- and double-ended digital lamps, controllers and other accessories. Each product is designed to help retail and commercial growers maximize quality and achieve higher yields and maximize quality. 

Golden Developing Solutions, Inc. (DVLP)

chart

Golden Developing Solutions, Inc. (DVLP), an emerging leader in ancillary software and the cannabidiol (CBD) products marketplace, provides business services and/or products supporting the cannabis industry including an online retail business for CBD, hemp oil and health/wellness related products.

Global acceptance of cannabis and related CBD products continues to increase as North America advances toward favorable legislation. Canada legalized recreational cannabis in October 2018, and the United States has 30 states and the District of Columbia allowing either recreational or medical cannabis, or both. Voters in four additional U.S. states will consider marijuana initiatives on the November 2018 ballot. The global legal cannabis market is projected to reach USD$146 billion by the end of 2025, with a greater acceptance of medical cannabis products as a driving factor, according to Grand View Research.

DVLP is taking advantage of consumer demand for CBD products through its wholly owned Pura Vida Vitamins, LLC subsidiary, which recently launched a direct-to-consumer website (www.PuraVidaVitamins.com) and commenced sales of Pura Vida branded products. Pura Vida merchandise includes hemp and CBD-related products and other products focusing on health and lifestyle which are available through established wholesale and distribution channels. In addition, a line of CBD pet supplements and other products are in development.

DVLP recently acquired "Where's Weed" (Layer Six Media LLC DBA "Where's Weed") and its primary asset, WheresWeed.com. Where's Weed is an American cannabis technology company known for connecting medical and recreational cannabis users with trusted local marijuana businesses in their communities. As a rapidly growing community-based online resource for cannabis consumers with a host of user-friendly services, Where's Weed offers a sophisticated mobile app with strong traction and powerful growth potential as the North American legal cannabis market continues to expand exponentially.

WheresWeed.com has a large and expanding reach with nearly 3 million pageviews per month. In addition, the WheresWeed mobile app, available in both iOS and Android, has been downloaded over 80,000 times, proving to be complementary to DVLP's objective to capitalize on the massive growth curve in the marijuana space.

"The huge flood of new growers and producers is likely to create oversupply in the near term, narrowing margins for major producers," says DVLP CEO Stavros Triant. "However, this should actually increase the net number of new consumers in the marketplace, further reinforcing the enormous growth potential for hub service providers in the space that are situated on high-traffic internet real estate, which is exactly how we view the Where's Weed property."

The company's move into the lucrative C-store snack market was solidified with a material purchase order for CBD oils from a major distributor specializing in the snack foods and accessories to the convenience store and gas station market. The order represents significant progress as DVLP gears up its ready-made snack distribution strategy for its CBD products.

"We are extremely excited about the launch of our CBD product line with this distributor," Triant states. "The C-Store strategy dovetails perfectly with our direct marketing strategy through our primary online retail channel, and we have indications from the distributor that, if this initial test order goes well, successive Purchase Orders could be significant and underpin strong sales growth in Q1 2019."

Green Growth Brands Inc. (CSE: GGB) (OTCQB: GGBXF)

chart

Green Growth Brands Inc. (CSE: GGB) (OTCQB: GGBXF) is a lifestyle-oriented cannabis and cannabidiol ("CBD") consumer products company with a portfolio of lifestyle brands customized to connect specific, like-minded customers. Each Green Growth Brand provides the best quality products within a retail experience that appeals to users in an environment that is emotionally branded and easy to navigate.

In the next five years, the cannabis industry will generate more than $28 billion of new revenue from an estimated 14 million new customers, according to Ackrell Capital's 2018 Cannabis Investment Report. Meanwhile, Hemp Business Journal projects that the CBD market will increase 8x to $3 billion by 2021, up from $200 million in 2017. Green Growth Brand intends to dominate in these markets with a lineup up products grown, manufactured and presented with the highest quality standards in mind.

Products under the Green Growth Brand umbrella include:

  • CAMP: A kiosk-type store where consumers can experience beautifully crafted lifestyle products that enhance one's journey to self-discovery.
  • Seventh Sense: A CBD-infused body care collection crafted from the finest botanicals and fragrances on earth. Created to maximize the properties and aromatics of each ingredient, Seventh Sense natural products are CBD-infused botanical therapy.
  • Meri+Jayne: Fiercely authentic and wholly unapologetic, Meri+Jayne is a youthful, full-on celebration of what makes each person unique. Expect the unexpected when it comes to this mix of amazing products.
  • Green Lily: A place for women to explore a new world of wellness. With advice on every product, from efficacy to usage, Green Lily guides guests through beautiful new ways to experience cannabis and CBD.
  • The +Source: Located in Las Vegas and Henderson, Nevada, The+Source dispensaries operated by Green Growth Brands serve both medical patients and retail customers. Green Growth Brands also operates a grow and production facility in Post, Nevada, and recently entered into definitive agreements to acquire a Pahrump, Nevada, cultivation facility.
  • XanthicBiopharms is the owner of valuable intellectual property that turns THC(Tetrahydrocannabinol) and CBD into a water-soluble substance. As a result of combining Green Growth Brands and Xanthic, this technology is being used to create incredible new products.

Business Strategy

Green Growth Brands has identified numeroushitches in the current cannabis retail space. The company intends to counter these challenges and provide a customer experience ripe with a friendly staff, in-stock assortments, efficient operations and more. The company's retail partners provide distribution opportunities within 4,000 stores, as well as robust and established digital platforms to best reach the modern consumer.

Management

Green Growth Brands brings together a collection of expert retailers, scientists, botanists, developers, artists and business leaders for the benefit of building community. Led by an executive management team steeped in decades of experience with several of America's most successful brands, including Victoria's Secret, American Eagle Outfitters, Bath & Body Works, Limited Brands and Designer Shoe Warehouse, Green Growth Brands is uniquely positioned to create memorable brands, retail experiences, and quality products for the emerging cannabis industry.

Chief Executive Officer Peter Horvath heads strategy and execution across all company channels, and previously took shoe retailer DSW public on the NYSE at $1.5 billion. As a dynamic, creative brand leader, team builder, and specialty retail veteran with deep roots in finance, Horvath's unique ability to understand the big picture while never missing the subtle details is a critical factor in Green Growth Brands' success and brand popularity among customers.

Chief Marketing Officer Scott Razek is a brand strategist, storyteller and strategic marketer. Razek's 25 years of experience in brand building, product development and customer experience focus are a key differentiator for the Green Growth Brands portfolio.

CAO Ed Kistner brings 33 years of multifaceted experience at leading retail businesses, notably in finance, merchandise planning, operations and stores. His well-rounded experiences in fast-changing environments position Kistner to be the architect of the operational execution at Green Growth Brands.

CSO Kellie Wurtzman brings significant retail leadership to Green Growth Brands with a proven track record of leading high-performance stores and teams across multiple retail sectors. Her unmatched experience in identifying and supporting developing business opportunities is ideal for evolving the cannabis industry and will be instrumental in expanding operations at Green Growth Brands.

Headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, Green Growth Brands is traded on the Canadian Securities Exchange and on the OTCQB, providing investors with increased access to data, transparency and liquidity.

Green Hygienics Holdings Inc. (GRYN)

chart

Green Hygienics Holdings Inc. (GRYN)is a full-scope, premium cannabis cultivation company targeting the high-end medical and adult-use recreational market. With more than 25 years of experience in agricultural science and innovation, Green Hygienics is establishing itself as a leader in the advancement of science-driven cannabis cultivation systems. The company will grow by generating revenues from the sales of premium grade cannabis products, developing and licensing valuable IP, making strategic acquisitions, and creating trusted global consumer brands.

The company has integrated and is developing its own IP assets related to proprietary systems and apparatus, software, algorithms and custom-engineered hardware. This provides ultimate efficiencies in a commercially controlled cultivation environment. Utilizing the advantages of hybrid-aeroponics, Green Hygienics creates a sterile growing environment that produces consistent, high-quality product while maintaining the lowest possible carbon footprint. The company utilizes state-of-the-art, quality-controlled commercial cultivation methodology to assure production of pharmaceutical-grade cannabis at much higher yields and greatly reduced costs.

Hybrid-aeroponics produces quality cannabis faster than traditional methods since it doesn't require natural sunlight or soil and can be operational and produce plants anywhere. Plants grown under aeroponic conditions receive water and nutrients directly to their roots via a fine mist in a controlled environment, dramatically reducing spoilage while keeping the product organic and the environment pest-free. The plants are given the exact amount of nutrients and moisture precisely when needed. Green Hygienics maintains ultimate control over every aspect of this cultivation process, which allows the company to operate with conservation of natural resources in mind. The technology that uses 90-95 percent less water and does not require the use of pesticides or fungicides.

Additionally, the company's state-of-the-art engineered, controlled environments include electrical, mechanical and HVAC designs that meet mandatory fire and energy codes while improving energy efficiency significantly.

Through these practices, Green Hygienics is establishing itself as a leader in the advancement of science-driven cannabis cultivation systems. The company continues to develop and incubate software as well as engineer hardware to provide additional control over the commercial cultivation method. The company's science-based approach reveals any growth anomalies before the human eye can see them. This makes it possible to monitor all facets of production, identify cultivation problems based upon scientific data, and implement immediate corrective action, if needed.

The future of commercial cannabis cultivation hinges on using science to control the growing environment in order to remain competitive and deliver a premium grade of product on a consistent basis. The company holds a competitive advantage through its ability to produce premium cannabis products at a significantly lower cost per gram than direct competitors and others in the cannabis industry.

Innovations within the sector that create efficiencies and successful brands will become highly valued. Green Hygienics and its forward-thinking management team are constantly studying the market dynamics of the cannabis industry in North America and abroad while actively pursuing possible expansion opportunities. The company is headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada and establishing operations in San Diego, California, targeting the $5 billion California cannabis market.

Icon Exploration Inc. (TSX.V: IEX.H)

chart

Icon Exploration Inc. (TSX.V: IEX.H) primary objective is to create a well-diversified company focused on assessing and potentially acquiring targets in the cannabis industry. Icon Exploration recently signed a formal share exchange agreement relating to its proposed acquisition of privately held City View Green ("CVG"), a vertically integrated cannabis company incorporated under the laws of Ontario, Canada. CVG's application to Health Canada for an Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations ("ACMPR") license is now at the in-depth review stage of the licensing process.

CVG is preparing a 40,000-square-foot growing facility near Toronto to produce pharmaceutical-grade cannabis once its ACMPR license is granted. About half of the facility will initially be outfitted with state-of-the-art LED lighting, HVAC and dehumidification systems, and automation technologies to optimize the quality, safety and consistency of cannabis production. About 4,000 square feet will be devoted to an extraction laboratory featuring an ultra-efficient CO2 supercritical extraction process with plans to include ethanol extraction technology in the future.

Another 4.3 acres remains available for future construction of up to 125,000 square feet of grow and extraction space. Production plans include producing high quality edible products, distillates, and water-soluble products for the rapidly expanding CBD-infused (cannabidiol) beverage market.

Management

Icon and CVG have assembled a talented team that includes a Master Grower with cannabis-industry experience to manage indoor grow operations and an extraction expert whose expertise in developing and launching new products was honed while working in Washington state's cannabis sector. Having gained experience in the Washington state market the extraction expert has a number of brand ideas and recreational cannabis products that became popular in the Washington market as well as a number of in-licensing branding opportunities available to CVG. CVG has also negotiated an agreement with a private company seeking 37 retail cannabis licenses in Alberta, Canada, that provides a reciprocal exchange of shares, product, shelf space and distribution lines. Early discussions with various entities in Europe to arrange an off-take agreement for CBD oils and extracts are also underway.

Market Opportunity

The Canadian medical cannabis market has steadily been growing with an average 10 percent increase in patients each month. Now that the Canadian federal government has legalized recreational cannabis for adult users nationwide, analysts project a compound annual growth rate of nearly 78 percent from 2018 to 2021, reaching an estimated $3 billion by 2021, ArcView Market Research reports. One study from Deloitte pegged the potential economic impact of legalized medical and recreational marijuana in Canada – including transportation, licensing fees and security – at more than $22 billion over the coming years. Health Canada's most recent data show that sales of cannabis extracts grew 961 percent in the second quarter of 2017, compared to an 89 percent increase in growth of dried cannabis during the same period.

Lexaria Bioscience Corp. (CSE: LXX) (LXX) (OTC: LXRP)

chart

Lexaria Bioscience Corp. (CSE: LXX) (LXX) (OTC: LXRP) has developed and out-licenses its proprietary technology for improved taste, rapidity, and delivery of bioactive compounds, including nicotine and cannabinoids. To achieve higher absorption rates and fast onset, consumers traditionally defaulted to smoking. Lexaria provides a superior administration method by delivering these substances through a patented process within edible food products, thus eliminating all the harmful health consequences of smoking.

Lexaria's technology is unique in that it takes advantage of GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) food ingredients processed with its patented DehydraTECHTM technology to improve taste, remove odor, and decrease the time to onset of bitter-tasting drugs. Lexaria is primarily a B2B enterprise and has existing cannabinoid licensing agreements with companies in Canada, the largest-market states in the United States, and internationally. Lexaria has entered into a R&D partnership with one of the largest cigarette companies in the world for oral forms of nicotine delivery. Lexaria has also developed its own brands partly for demonstration purposes, utilizing its patented technology to infuse hemp oil ingredients within popular foods such as coffee, tea, and supplements. These brands include ViPova™ and TurboCBD™.

In 2015, Lexaria commissioned an independent third-party lab to test its technology under carefully monitored in vitro conditions. Results showed that the company's technological process and lipid formulation improve intestinal absorption as much as 500%. Lexaria has conducted multiple rounds of studies including in vivo and human clinical. In absorption studies conducted on rats, for example, Lexaria detected nicotine in the animal's bloodstream just two minutes after it entered the stomach. In a randomized, double blinded human clinical study, cannabidiol (CBD) was measure in the human bloodstream at a 317% higher rate 30 minutes after swallowing a capsule processed with DehydraTECH than a non-enhanced capsule of equal strength.

Lexaria also has an R&D partnership with the Canadian government's National Research Council. That R&D is expected to characterize molecular bond formation theorized to occur with Lexaria's unique technology between the lipid delivery agents and the bioactive substances it processes and combines. Results from this R&D have helped support B2B relationships with Fortune 500 companies. Lexaria has four distinct subsidiaries that focus on different market sectors: Hemp/CBD; Pharmaceutical; Cannabis; and Nicotine.

Aside from testing, a critical component of Lexaria Bioscience's business model is a strong and growing intellectual property portfolio. As of the end of 2018, the company's patent portfolio includes 53 patent applications filed and pending in more than 40 countries around the world; and 10 patents granted to date. Lexaria is expecting additional new patent awards both in the U.S. and internationally in 2019 and beyond. Some of its more recent areas of investigation have included human hormones and erectile dysfunction substances, among others.

Royalties play a vital role in Lexaria's revenue-generating business model. The company out-licenses its technology (royalty) to third-partners and has signed royalty deals with start-up companies as well as with a Fortune 100. The company's growth initiatives are guided by a management team headed by CEO Chris Bunka, a serial entrepreneur who has contributed to several multi-hundred million-dollar valuations over the course of his career. He is supported by a growing team of professionals with extensive experience in pharmaceutical and bioscience sectors, invention, toxicology, consumer goods, and other relevant skillsets.

Lithium Chile Inc. (TSX.V: LITH:CA) (OTC: LTMCF)

chart

Lithium Chile Inc. (TSX.V: LITH:CA) (OTC: LTMCF), headquartered in Canada, is advancing one of the largest lithium-rich exploration portfolios in Chile consisting of 152,900 hectares covering sections of 14 salars or mineral salt flats and one laguna complex. The company's wholly owned premier properties include 66 square kilometers on the Salar de Atacama, Chile's largest mineral salt flat which hosts the world's highest concentration of lithium brine production and is currently the source of about 35 percent of the world's lithium production. Lithium Chile also owns a significant copper/gold/silver property portfolio consisting of 28,184 hectares over six different properties.

Lithium Chile's portfolio in the heart of Chile's lithium-rich salars includes Salar de Coipasa, Salar de Helados, Salar de Atacama, Salar de Turi Salar de Ollague and Salar de Talar. Surface and near surface salt and brine sampling programs on all properties has been completed. To date, samples of high-grade, near-surface lithium brines at each of these projects are showing excellent chemistry of lithium to potassium and lithium to magnesium ratios. Good chemistry is important as it reduces your overall cost of production. Recent geophysical surveys including T.E.M have been completed on 5 of 6 priority targets and data collected to date has been extremely encouraging.

Lithium Chile has identified multiple high-priority brine target areas at its Atacama and Ollague lithium project areas. These areas display the same geophysical characteristics as the lithium-rich aquifers at Salar de Atacama, home to the world's largest and highest-grade lithium brine producers. Spanning an area of 1,200 square miles, Salar de Atacama is the world's third largest salt flat behind Salinas Grandes in Argentina and El Salar de Uyuni in neighboring Bolivia. Exploration drilling and resource definition drilling for these target areas are planned for 2018.

"We are delighted with the discovery of such impressive drill target areas at Atacama and Ollague. The results also follow the recent discovery of a 60km2 target area at another of our top Chilean projects – Helados – where we hope to drill in the second quarter of 2018," stated President and CEO Steve Cochrane. "We have an aggressive multi-project drill program planned for this year, which includes all three of these exciting projects and we look forward to sharing drill results as they come through."

Global demand for lithium-ion batteries is expected to surpass US$53 billion by 2024 as governments around the world aggressively seek to ban gas-powered vehicles and major automakers invest billions in new technology and electric vehicles powered by lithium-ion batteries. Chile's mining-friendly jurisdiction offers Lithium Chile a clear, streamlined permitting process that significantly lowers the cost of lithium production to around $1,800/ton as compared to Australia's $5,000/ton.

Lithium Chile is led by an experienced team with strong Chilean connections. Cochrane's 36 years of investment industry experience have primarily been focused on the mining sector. During this time, he raised more than US$500 million for a variety of small cap public companies in various businesses and industry sectors including mining.

Terry Walker, P.Geol., vice president of exploration and chief geologist, is a highly experienced geologist. He has spent over 25 years in Chile's mining industry and is well connected throughout the sector. Walker is co-founder of GeoServicios Piedra Dorada, an exploration and development services company focused on Latin America. He is a Qualified Person for the North American and Australian stock exchanges.

Lithium Chile is well funded and driven by a top-tier team with more than 100 years of combined experience in financing, mining exploration and development in the natural resources sector.

Marijuana Company of America Inc. (MCOA)

chart

Marijuana Company of America Inc. (MCOA) (the "Company") are pioneers in the cannabis industry going back to 2009 when Don Steinberg, MCOA's CEO, founded the first marijuana company ever to trade on a U.S. stock market, Medical Marijuana Inc. Since then, Don and his partner, Charlie Larsen, have formed Global Hemp Group and Marijuana Company of America. They have experienced the shift of legislation first hand, not only for the legalization of marijuana but also the emerging hemp-based CBD products.

The CBD market is growing exponentially and consequently the founders of MCOA have constructed their business model around the development of industrial hemp-based CBD products. The industrial hemp plant can be used to produce products that are carbon neutral or even carbon negative. It is one of the longest, strongest natural fibers on earth, used as a building material that is free of mold, pesticide-resistant, and fire proof. Hemp has also been described as a "super food," which provides additional business opportunities. No part of the plant is left unused and the Company's overall strategy is to take advantage of every profit center from farm to the multiple valuable finished products.

The cannabis and hemp industries are experiencing unprecedented growth that is expected to continue for many years as these industries are now accepted globally and continue to mature and expand. North American consumers spent $6.7 billion on legal cannabis products in 2016, up 34% from 2015's $5 billion. This trend is widely expected to explode at a 27% compounded annual growth rate to reach $22.6 billion by 2021, according to ArcView Market Research.

The company offers investors the opportunity to be on the forefront of cannabis and hemp innovation through cultivation, processing in the legal cannabis and industrial hemp sectors. The Company's business model includes producing a diverse portfolio of synergistic business segments that provide value to its shareholders. Its vertically integrated business model and distribution platforms are positioned to capture market share by developing recognizable and valuable brands.

Under the MCOA umbrella, wholly owned subsidiary hempSMART™, Inc. is committed to bringing high quality CBD-based products to the market through its affiliate marketing program. Through hempSMART, MCOA's strategic approach to the distribution of products is through a networking architecture geared to maintain customer loyalty and capture market share. The patent-pending product "hempSMART Brain," is designed to revolutionize the safe and effective support of healthy brain function. The brand new product, HempSMART DROPS, is a full-spectrum CBD tincture formulated with hemp and fractionated coconut oils. The hempSMART marketing team has decades of experience, and is well positioned to take the hempSMART brand to a global audience.

Medical Cannabis Payment Solutions (REFG)

chart

Medical Cannabis Payment Solutions (REFG), headquartered in Cheyenne, Wyoming, is a first-tier merchant processing cannabis industry pioneer, offering one of the first and only comprehensive card processing operations of its kind to serve the state-sanctioned medical marijuana industry. The company's state of the art system, which also tracks sales and tax collection, and eliminates the need to deal in cash-only transactions.

Through its robust, closed-loop merchant processing system, the company's unique "StateSourced" proprietary system enables authorized operation under FinCEN parameters and complies with all regulatory frameworks. StateSourced is tailored to deliver full-spectrum merchant processing services, providing the convenience of modern commercial card processing resources and making it the first operation of its kind geared to the legal cannabis industry.

StateSourced is not a prepaid or gift card, which is an important variable for merchants since standard banking institutions have not offered this form of payment processing to the legal cannabis industry. Federal law still considers marijuana illegal under the Controlled Substances Act, although 29 states and the District of Columbia have legalized the plant either for medicinal or recreational uses or both. This restriction has kept financial institutions at bay since most banks are federally insured and haven't been inclined to venture into the nascent industry.

Medical Cannabis Payment Solutions is able to offer its StateSourced card on a state-by-state basis where the card can be used in purchasing product from a legal, authorized vendor, providing a much-needed option for consumers and businesses alike. In another first, the company is collaborating with First Bitcoin Capital Corporation to integrate First Bitcoin's cryptocurrency ($Weed) with Medical Cannabis Payment Solutions' StateSourced payment gateway. This collaboration will allow state-licensed marijuana establishments across the nation to accept both StateSourced debit cards and cryptocurrencies such as WeedCoin and Bitcoin.

Medical Cannabis Payment Solutions president and CEO Jeremy Roberts and his executive team are working with state lawmakers to introduce legislation in an effort to address the growing problems in banking for the medical cannabis industry. For companies in the emerging legal cannabis industry, where retail and non-retail transactions such as vendor payments and payroll are almost exclusively paid for with cash, the solutions offered by StateSourced can help businesses avoid the inherent risks associated with a cash-intensive sector. Medical Cannabis Payment Solutions has also signed its first StateSourced contract with a Las Vegas-based vertically integrated marijuana establishment.

"We've completed our transition from development stage to revenue stage," says Roberts. "We have just started our business development efforts and the market is responding very well. We anticipate having many more, similar releases."

Medical Cannabis Payment Solutions provides end-to-end management across multiple systems for medicinal marijuana operations. The company solves the fragmentation problem experienced by many of these rapidly growing companies by identifying tools that are important to dispensaries and customizing those tools to meet the specific needs of this unique industry.

Millennial Lithium Corp. (TSX.V: (ML) (FSE: A3N2) (OTC: MLNLF)

chart

Millennial Lithium Corp. (TSX.V: (ML) (FSE: A3N2) (OTC: MLNLF) is engaged in the development of the Pastos Grandes lithium project in Salta Province, Argentina. The company's Pastos Grandes project totals approximately 10,000 hectares located in geopolitically stable, mining-friendly jurisdictions. The company also enjoys a solid strategic partnership with GCL, a Chinese solar giant that has become Millennial Lithium's lead investor with approximately $30 million investment to date.

Millennial Lithium's compelling valuation places it with a $123 million market cap, third only to Lithium Americas and Orocobre in the region. The company holds a strong cash position of C$40 million and is pursuing a strategic plan moving forward in 2019 that includes an updated NI 43-101 resource report and a full bankable feasibility study, including supporting evaporation ponds and pilot processing plant.

Projects

Argentina currently produces 17 percent of the world's lithium supply. Lithium is at the cornerstone of a quiet industrial revolution as it brings together energy, automotive and technologies companies to foster a lasting move away from carbon-based resources. Lithium demand is expected to grow at an annual rate of 22 percent through 2025 with increased demands for lithium-ion batteries used in electric vehicles and battery-based energy storage leading the way.

Millennial Lithium has a world-class lithium brine asset strategically located in the heart of the Argentinean portion of the South American "Lithium Triangle."

The company's flagship lithium brine project, Pastos Grandes, is following a two-year timeline to production as a result of some of the best infrastructure in the Lithium Triangle. Located 231 km from the city of Salta at an elevation of 3,800 meters, Pastos Grandes is accessible year-round with all-weather access to paved highways, power and natural gas. Based on proven technology, brine extraction, solar evaporation and conventional lithium brine processing, Millennial Lithium's preliminary economic assessment (PEA) of the Pastos Grandes project, completed by international engineering firm WorleyParsons, estimates a mine life of 25 years with a three-year ramp up to 25,000 tonnes per year of Lithium-Carbonate. A 3 tonne-per-month lithium carbonate pilot plant is currently being built for use at the site.

To date, 23 exploration wells are completed with $40 million spent in development. A revised Resource Estimate is planned for Q1 2019. Four pumping wells are also to be completed in Q1 2019 with two water wells currently being drilled in support of the ongoing Feasibility Study, also being completed by WorleyParsons. Infrastructure buildup is underway, including completion of a 40-man camp, hybrid solar-diesel power system, pilot plant and laboratory with ICP unit for rapid sample assays and a liming plant for treating concentrated brines form the pilot ponds. Millennial Lithium is also constructing a Pastos Grandes community center/warehouse and all-purpose building that is central to building community relations with local residents.

Encouraging results from an extended pumping test of a second production-scale well at the Pastos Grandes project revealed that at a pumping rate of 15 liters/second (L/s), the lithium content remained consistent over the 23-day trial period with a drawdown of approximately 57 meters with rapid recovery. Estimated transmissivity (the rate at which the brine moves through the aquifer) is 40 square meters per day, demonstrating the aquifer's strong potential to sustain a long-term pumping rate of 15 L/s.

Brine sampling completed daily during the pumping test over the 23-day period revealed the chemistry is consistent with lithium ranging from 482 mg/L and 518 mg/L, averaging 495 mg/L. The best lithium values occurred during the last five days of the pumping test. The magnesium to lithium (Mg/Li) ratio averages 5.3 and the average potassium to lithium ratio (K/Li) is 10.5 and the average sulphate to lithium ratio (SO4/Li) is 16.4. Sampling was conducted in accordance with CIM guidelines for brine resource evaluation, with an appropriate chain of custody and QA/QC program in place for ensuring veracity, accuracy and precision of the analytical results.

Management Team

Millennial Lithium's highly prospective lithium assets and strategies are bolstered by a world class management and board with extensive experience in lithium and large development projects.

President/CEO/Director Farhad Abasov, MBA, has founded and managed a number of mining aassets with successful exits in the last few years. He was president and CEO of Allana Potash which was sold to Israel Chemicals Ltd. for $170 million in 2015. As executive chairman of Rodinia Lithium, Abasov developed lithium bring projects in Argentina in 2016. He was also co-founder of Potash One, acquired by German potash company K+S for $430 million in 2010, and was senior vice president, strategy, at Energy Metals, acquired by Uranium One for $1.88 million in 2007.

Iain Scarr, BSc., MBA, is Chief Operating Officer with a wealth of experience in lithium brine development and operations. He worked at Rio Tinto, industrial minerals, including lithium resource development in Serbia. Scarr led feasibility work at Sal de Vida lithium brine project (Galaxy Resources, Argentina); completed the Rincon lithium brine project feasibility study (Enirgi, Argentina); and is a resident of Salta with established, strong relationships in the region.

Chief Financial Officer Max Missiouk, CPA, CMA, has served as a CFP and controller for a number of publicly listed resource and venture companies including Allana Potash Corp. and Crocodile Gold Corp. He is a CPA (CMA) and has a post-graduate degree in banking and finance management.

Peter J. MacLean, Ph.D., P.Geo, is senior vice president, technical services. He has more than 30 years of exploration and development experience in North America, South America and Africa. Most recently, MacLean acted as senior vice president/exploration of Allana Potash Corp. and directed all exploration and development activities on its flagship Danakhil Potash Project in Ethiopia including managing the company's Feasibility Study and overseeing pilot solution mining and evaporation pond trials. He has also worked extensively on projects throughout the Americas and is fluent in Spanish.

Peter Ehren, M.Sc., AusIMM CP, process consultant, has been involved in lithium brines for more than 20 years. Ehren has worked at the Salar de Atacama as part of SQM's team of leading evaporation technology experts, rising to the position of R&D manager. He has worked in the majority of lithium basins worldwide for numerous projects including Orocobre's Salar de Olaroz Project.

MustGrow Biologics Corp.

MustGrow Biologics Corp. is an agricultural biotech company focused on developing and commercializing its patented technology that is a natural biopesticide and biofertilizer for use as a fertilizer, nematicide, pesticide and fungicide. MustGrow's novel and proprietary solutions utilize organic components refined from mustard seed to provide high quality, organic pest control to growers facing challenges associated with soil-borne diseases and pests such as nematodes. The company's technology provides an all-natural, effective, safe and easy-to-use solution for farmers seeking to raise healthy crops without the use of pesticides.

Nematodes, or microscopic worms, are the most numerous multicellular animals on earth. A handful of soil will contain thousands of nematodes, many of which are parasites of insects, plants or animals. Most plant-parasitic nematodes feed on the roots of plants, damaging the root system and reducing the plant's ability to absorb water and nutrients (http://nnw.fm/Qkz21). For the past 50 years, nematodes have been controlled using chemical nematicides, but the Environmental Protection Agency now restricts or bans many of the chemical formulations.

MustGrow's technologies provide nematode control that is equal and often superior to synthetic alternatives, resulting in elevated yields and increased returns for the grower. The global economic impact of soil-borne nematodes is estimated at nearly $100 billion in lost crops per year. The American Phytopathological Society (http://nnw.fm/3HGuT), an international nonprofit scientific organization dedicated to the study and control of plant diseases, estimates that plant-pathogenic nematodes are responsible for 14 percent of crop losses worldwide.

MustGrow's technology refines mustard seeds to concentrate the plant's natural organic compounds that form Allyl isothiocyanate ("AITC"), which serves the plant as a natural defense system against pests and diseases. As a result, MustGrow's novel product offers first-class performance, is 100 percent natural, and its fertilizer product is listed for organic use by the Organic Materials Review Institute ("OMRI") under specifications set by the USDA's National Organic Program.

MustGrow's initial technology was a granular pre-plant soil biofumigant and biofertilizer containing the active ingredient AITC, a proven nematicide, fungicide and fertilizer. The company has completed 110 independent third-party field trials on fruit and vegetable crops. As a biofertilizer, MustGrow's product is registered with Health Canada and the EPA in all U.S. states as OMRI-certified. It is also registered for use as a biopesticide by the EPA in key fruit and vegetable growing U.S. states (except California) and with Health Canada. MustGrow is finalizing a new liquid delivery platform with increased concentration of the same active ingredient (AITC) that can be applied through drip lines to meet the demands of today's growers.

Results of tests completed to date show that MustGrow continues to provide innovative solutions with broad based applications within agriculture. Validated field trial results include:

  • 100 percent control of root-knot nematodes in strawberry crops as compared to methyl bromide
  • 55 percent tomato crop yield increase
  • 95 percent control of Pythium root rot in lettuce fields
  • 70 percent reduction in Verticillium root severity in cucumbers
  • Market Opportunity

Market Opportunity  

MustGrow is also testing the potential application of its technology to the cannabis industry, which is projected to grow to nearly $22 billion in the U.S. by 2020. While there are no uniform guidelines for pesticide use in the cannabis industry, state-by-state regulations in the U.S. do exist which has led to instances of pesticide-tainted cannabis showing up in tested products, leading to recalls and threats of lawsuits. Health Canada recently published regulations for mandatory testing for pesticides in cannabis that are now in effect for all growers. MustGrow's potential application for cannabis production shows that when its product is used as a pre-plant/pot soil treatment, it may significantly help control many soil-borne diseases, pathogens and pests, including nematodes, fusarium, rhizoctonia, and botrytis (gray mold) that affect the cannabis plant. Cannabis consumers are increasingly demanding organic products free from chemicals and have shown they are willing to pay a premium for high-quality organic cannabis. MustGrow is currently running cannabis soil trials and is seeking Health Canada approval for use of its product on cannabis. 

Global crop protection is a multibillion-dollar market that is expected to surge over the next five years. Sales of nematicides are set to grow by 33 percent to $1.43 billion by 2022, while biopesticides are projected to leap by 94 percent to an estimated $9.5 billion by 2022. MustGrow is targeting the global nematicide industry with products that include an innovative pre-plant soil treatment. Solutions for the global biopesticide industry include seed treatment technologies, fungicides and nematicides.  

MustGrow's groundbreaking technologies use novel plant compounds to provide superior crop protection naturally.

Management Team

President and CEO Corey Giasson is an entrepreneur with more than 20 years in the agriculture, potash, oil and gas, mining and real estate industries.  Mr. Giasson co-founded Rallyemont Energy Inc., a heavy oil company that successfully identified 140 million barrels of recoverable heavy oil, that was sold in 2013 to Husky Energy. He holds an MBA and bachelor's degree in agricultural economics from the University of Saskatchewan.

Chairman Brad Munro has 20-plus years as a vice president/investments, with a national venture capital firm where he sourced, invested and managed the activity of over 30 companies and invested $150 million. He has served as a director of over 20 public companies and a greater number of private enterprises. Munro is currently director of Secure Energy Services.

COO Colin Betsky is the previous vice president/BioAg at Novozymes, where he was responsible for the company's BioAg business worldwide. He holds a bachelor's degree in agriculture from the University of Saskatchewan and has more than 20 years of experience in agricultural chemicals and biologics.

Director Tom Flow is the founder and current president of The Flowr Corporation (TSX.V: FLWR) and Licensed Producer of cannabis in Canada. He founded and built MedReleaf, Canada's most profitable Licensed Producer which was later acquired by Aurora Cannabis (TSX: ACB) (NYSE: ACB) for $3.2 billion. Flow is widely recognized for his leadership and expertise in building and operating cannabis cultivation facilities.

Director Matt Kowalski has a tremendous amount of experience in the fruit and vegetable and biologics industries. Under his leadership at Natural Industries, a business focused on biological pest control, the company was awarded five EPA registrations: three biofungicides, a bionematicide, and a bioinsecticide. In November 2012, Kowalski led the strategic sale of Natural Industries to Novozymes BioAg. He is the principal owner of Stronghold Keep Inc., an investment corporation.

CFO Todd Lahti has extensive experience evaluating and managing start-up companies in the biotechnology, agricultural and oil and gas sectors, working directly on financing transactions, mergers and acquisitions, corporate strategy, business development, technology transfer and operations set up. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst and a Chartered Professional Accountant.

Net Element (NASDAQ: NETE)

chart

Net Element (NASDAQ: NETE) is a global financial technology and value-added solutions group that supports electronic payments acceptance in an omni-channel environment spanning across point-of-sale, e-commerce, and mobile devices. Net Element operates a payments-as-a-service transactional model and value-added services platform for small to medium enterprises in the U.S. and selected emerging markets. Internationally, Net Element's strategy is to leverage its omni-channel platform to deliver flexible offerings to emerging markets with diverse banking, regulatory and demographic conditions. Net Element was ranked as one of the fastest growing companies in North America on Deloitte's 2017 Technology Fast 500 ™ and South Florida Business Journal's 2016 fastest growing technology companies.

Net Element believes the future of global commerce is being revolutionized as consumers quickly migrate toward omni-channel shopping utilizing mobile devices, desktop, and online services. Net Element's all-in-one payment solutions support and unify a whole range of applications through a single, robust platform, allowing global onboarding and support for multiple payment methods.

With an eye on emerging markets, Net Element is pursuing growth opportunities and footholds in a number of industries. The company's most recent application of its technology is to the cannabis industry, which is paced to hit $591 million and could increase 40 times in the next four years. This rampant growth also creates heightened need for smooth transactions between merchants and consumers. Payment processing and compliance for the cannabis industry has become increasingly complex, and Net Element's Unified Payments subsidiary is addressing the challenges by offering a compliant, seamlessly integrated payment solution that makes it simple to transact.

Net Element has also launched a blockchain-focused business unit that will develop and deploy blockchain technology-based solutions. Net Element expects the new division to create a decentralized crypto-based ecosystem that will act as a framework for an unlimited number of value-added services, connecting merchants and consumers in a seamless, economically efficient transaction. This new business unit intends to also identify and invest in unique projects that decentralize and disrupt the payment processing industry by combining blockchain technology and real-world applications with talented development teams, strong fundamentals and addressable markets large in size.

"We believe that we're at the dawn of a new evolution where additional digital payment methods are being introduced," Net Element CEO Oleg Firer, says. "Introduction of our division focused on blockchain as part of the NASDAQ-listed entity will add transparency and compliance assurance to our investors as well as provide access to deploy value-added services to over 20 million electronic commerce clients that are currently part of Net Element's growing network."

Net Element clients are treated to customized solutions that provide the flexibility needed to keep up with customers. Among the services offered are mobile payment apps that accept payments anywhere, anytime; cloud-based solutions built to increase productivity and enhance revenue for clients and partners; marketing solutions that turn lookers into buyers; and business analytics that make it easy for clients to monitor business metrics, engage with customers and compare the competition. Its multi-channel platform combines e-commerce, offline, point-of-sale, comprehensive back office tools, mobile point-of-sale, credit scoring and customer interaction in one powerful platform-as-a-service technology.

Net Element owns and operates a global mobile payments and transactional processing provider, TOT Group, Inc., with the following subsidiaries:

  • Unified Payments – An award-winning, customized mobile billing and payments solution, recognized by Inc. Magazine as the No. 1 Fastest Growing Company in America in 2012.
  • Digital Provider – A leading provider of SMS messaging and mobile billing solutions.
  • Aptito – A next-generation, all-in-one, cloud-based restaurant management and point-of-sale payments platform using wireless technology.
  • Payonline – A fully integrated, processor agnostic electronic commerce platform.

Net Element is ranked No. 418 on Deloitte's 2017 Technology Fast 500™ list of North America's 500 fastest growing technology, media, telecommunications, life sciences and energy tech companies. Net Element grew 190 percent. The company's chief executive officer, Oleg Firer, credits the company's progression to organic growth in its North America Transactions Segment, specifically the success of its Unified Payments brand, which focuses on value-added payment acceptance solutions for small to medium enterprises in the United States.

"The Deloitte 2017 North America Technology Fast 500 winners underscore the impact of technological innovation and world class customer service in driving growth, in a fiercely competitive environment," said Sandra Shirai, vice chairman, Deloitte Consulting LLP and U.S. technology, media and telecommunications leader. "These companies are on the cutting edge, and are transforming the way we do business."

Net Element's suite of application performing interfaces (APIs) and connectors power commerce for businesses of all sizes through multi-channel platforms, all-in-one digital solutions, and end-to-end encryption of cardholder data utilizing tamper resistant hardware that ensures integrity and simplifies security.

Net Element's corporate team is led by director and CEO Oleg Firer, who is responsible for the overall vision, strategy and execution of the company's mission of powering global commerce. He is joined by CFO Jeffrey Ginsburg, CPA, and Steven Wolberg, who is the company's chief legal officer and secretary. Each corporate officer brings a unique blend of leadership, vision, experience and creative energy to the company.

From mobile payments and value-added transactional innovations such as Digital Provider and Aptito to e-commerce and retail payment transaction processing brands like Payonline and United Payments, Net Element is transforming the online and mobile experience.

Pacific Rim Cobalt Corp. (CSE: BOLT) (OTCQB: PCRCF) (XFRA: NXFE)

chart

Pacific Rim Cobalt Corp. (CSE: BOLT) (OTCQB: PCRCF) (XFRA: NXFE) is a Canada-based exploration company focused on the acquisition and development of production-grade cobalt deposits, a key raw material input for the growing lithium-ion battery industry.

Pacific Rim Cobalt and its Cyclops Nickel-Cobalt Project, located in the Depapre District, Jayapura Regency, Papua Province, Republic of Indonesia, is uniquely positioned in a region with potentially the largest source of cobalt outside of Africa. Strategically located near China, the world's largest cobalt buyer, the Cyclops Project is a laterite (iron-hosted) mineral prospect, rich in cobalt and nickel. Cobalt consumption in China is on-track to use over 8,000 tonnes of cobalt annually by 2021 for electric vehicle production alone and is projected to remain the world's largest cobalt consumer for many years to come.

Global demand for renewable power is fueling a massive shift from traditional energy supply chain economics to cobalt-reliant lithium-ion batteries, the world's most widely used power source for portable applications such as electric vehicles and other high-tech applications.

Pacific Rim Cobalt management has concluded that strategic access to major markets offers the most important factor to servicing the rising demand for cobalt. The company's acquisition of its initial asset in Indonesia offers near surface, strong nickel-cobalt mineralization in an area with excellent infrastructure including a nearby workforce, supplies, sealed roads, ocean access, nearby port facility and gentle topography. The project area, nestled on the north coast of Papua, Indonesia, establishes Pacific Rim Cobalt well within the economically attractive ocean-going transportation range to Asia and its lucrative, growing industrial markets.

Exploration efforts are currently focused on establishing a maiden compliant resource for the Cyclops project, both in historically identified and drill-tested prospects as well as previously unexplored areas of the claims. During the first nine months of 2018, the company focused on assembling the necessary agreements to access northern areas of the project hosting historically identified mineralized zones. Mapping, sampling and a mini-bulk sample within the mineralized zones has been completed, along with a small-scale program in the previously unexplored far southern area of the project. With surface access to priority targets now established, Pacific Rim Cobalt will initiate drilling and extract additional mini-bulk samples for further metallurgical testing.

"We are excited and optimistic about the unique possibility of developing this project into an asset that will add shareholder value and position the company to play a future role in the battery metals supply chain," Pacific Rim Cobalt CEO Ranjeet Sundher recently stated (http://nnw.fm/u1HNs). "We expect the near-surface nature of cobalt/nickel mineralization at the Cyclops project will lend itself well to low-cost, logistically straightforward drilling. We thus anticipate the opportunity to undertake a resource calculation study, as well as ongoing metallurgy and process option testing, will present itself in the near future. It's going to be a busy year ahead, and we look forward to getting the drills turning and building value."

Pacific Rim Cobalt's world-class management team includes Sundher, who has over 20 years of capital markets experience. Sundher is also president of Canrim Ventures Ltd., a Singaporean advisory firm specializing in early stage project finance and structure. He previously founded Indogold Exploration, a Jakarta-based mining service firm, and has raised over $40 million for companies in which he was a founder/partner.

Chief Financial Officer Steve Vanry has 25 years of professional experience in senior management positions with public and private natural resources companies, providing expertise in capital markets corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, regulatory compliance, accounting and financial reporting.

Andre Talaska serves as country manager and technical supervisor. He has over 30 years of experience in the mining and exploration industry and has held senior positions with several companies in Australia and southeast Asia. Shakir Juffry, business development/engineering, is a chemical engineer and extractive metallurgist by background training who has over 20 years of experience in the Indonesian mining and minerals exploration field. Toto Suarto Sajali, operation and development manager, is a mining engineer with over 15 years of experience in Indonesian project assessment, development and operations.

Pacific Software, Inc. (PFSF)

chart

Pacific Software, Inc. (PFSF) is an emerging technology corporation positioned for investments, mergers and acquisitions of software technologies and platforms. The company is building "BoaPin," a subscription-based e-commerce trading platform focused on cross border trade expansion with an international emphasis. The multi-faceted e-commerce platform is scheduled for launch in Q1 of 2019.

The Company is uniquely positioned to deliver a B2B and B2C intelligent e-commerce trade platform which will provide various solutions, data, applications and tools for subscribers, including IBM's Hyperledger Blockchain "Backend as a Service" (BaaS) Infrastructure, multi-lingual communication, fintech, digital marketing, smart contracts, commodities search/match applications, customs clearance, taxation data, product advertising and logistics solutions.

Through smart contract technology for global supply chain management, BoaPin is designed to improve product traceability and deliver solutions to its subscribers for product certification, marketing, logistics, commodities search/match interface, trade finance, cross border payment solutions and customs clearance. Some of the tools available to execute these capabilities include cross border payments, blockchain solutions, smart contracts and multilingual access.

With these features at hand, the company is targeting several key industries where its online applications and solutions could have significant corporate impact in various forms, including: agriculture, fertilizers, chemicals, cosmetics, electronics, equipment, apparel and controlled substance management.

Business Model

Pacific Software initially will focus on Brazil and China for BoaPin. After paying a registration fee to utilize the online trade portal, subscribers to the platform will have access to a variety of tools and features that may enhance and increase revenue initiatives by showcasing their commodities and products for sale or trade.

Buyers of the commodities, products or services will pay a transaction fee only to the company which could materialize in the form of cash, cash equivalents, royalties or in-kind fees.

As the company executes its strategy, the online trade business is anticipated to generate significant revenue from subscribers obtained from regionally and federally organized Brazilian Trade Associations. The members wish to market their commodities or products, and the portal users or buyers materialize from China, Hong Kong and surrounding countries. As a result, this business model may be organized separately in the company's wholly owned subsidiary, incorporated as HyperSoft Ventures, which could generate appreciable value for investors and shareholders.

Phivida Holdings Inc. (CSE: VIDA) (OTC: PHVAF)

chart

Headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, with operations in San Diego, Calif., Phivida Holdings Inc. (CSE: VIDA) (OTC: PHVAF) is a premium food and beverage company that focuses on whole plant nutrition and natural ingredients that help best maintain overall health and balance in the human body. The company infuses active hemp into a variety of premium foods, beverages and supplements and is poised for global distribution. Phivida is guided by a team of Fortune 500-caliber executives focused on a new strategic portfolio of products and brands, comprehensive consumer research, new product and brand development, improved visual identity and packaging design, and a strong distribution strategy.

The company's mission is to become a leader in whole plant solutions by providing holistic remedies for a more natural alternative to pharmaceuticals and by guiding people toward a healthy lifestyle. Phivida embraces and celebrates a return to organic, natural, plant-based foods and beverages and a focus on holistic health and wellness.

Publicly traded on the Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE: VIDA) and the OTCQX Best Market in the U.S. (OTC: PHVAF), the company's strong balance sheet carries CAD$13 million with no debt or loans with ~60 million shares outstanding, and the company is now well-capitalized to fund major mainstream distribution with a solid structure that is poised for long-term growth.

Management

Phivida's management team includes president and CEO Jim Bailey, former president of Red Bull Canada and global chief marketing officer for Merrell Outdoors; Chief Marketing Officer Michael Cornwell, former chief marketing officer for Samsung New Zealand and the former director of marketing for Red Bull Canada; and Doug Campbell, former director of sales for Red Bull North America, who, as Phivida's chief commercial officer, is tasked with driving new sales revenue growth.

Using encapsulation technology, Phivida uses full spectrum CBD-hemp oil (rich in naturally occurring phytocannabinoids) converted into a water-soluble delivery format, which enhances delivery and absorption of the cannabinoids into the human body – up to an estimated tenfold.

The whole plant hemp extract is infused into functional beverages, food and supplements to target a range of health and wellness conditions. Phivida strives to lead the industry in product quality through high-quality ingredients and best-in-class testing. The Company has partnered with Flora Labs to test and ensure consistency and potency of all products. Flora Labs is a world-class testing lab with stringent QA and QC quality assessment protocols and will provide Phivida with ongoing impartial quality testing.

Regulations

Federally legal under the 2014 Farm Bill, CBD from hemp oil is a rapid growth market across the U.S. When derived from marijuana, CBD remains a schedule 1 controlled substance, giving hemp-derived CBD oil-infused products a competitive advantage on regulations. On June 28, 2018, the U.S. Senate passed the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (i.e. the "Farm Bill), lifting the U.S. Industrial Hemp laws to an agricultural commodity status and effectively removing hemp from the controlled substance list.

Earlier this year, another milestone court ruling also provided significant regulatory support for the U.S. CBD-hemp sector. In February 2018, the Supreme Court presided over the HIA (Hemp Industry Association) vs. DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency) in a class-action suit concerning the issue of CBD extracted from hemp and the legality of industrial hemp. In the final ruling, the Supreme Court unequivocally determined that hemp (and its derivatives), when produced domestically under the Farm Bill, are not a controlled substance.

The Supreme Court ruling also found the Farm Bill (as it relates to hemp) "pre-empts" the Controlled Substances Act. Congress has since exempted Farm Bill hemp from the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), giving the Farm Bill primary jurisdiction over the governance of the CBD-hemp oil industry in the U.S.

The DEA further conceded it does not "seek to control cannabinoids" and that only marijuana-derived cannabinoids are governed under the Controlled Substances Act. In May of 2018, the DEA issued a formal directive to all federal agencies (e.g., U.S. Customs and Border Patrol) stating that cannabinoids are not controlled substances unless derived from marijuana, and that the "mere presence of cannabinoids" in any product or derivative does not render it a controlled substance. The Supreme Court ruling also resulted in the mediation of a settlement in what is now the third successful HIA vs. DEA suit in over a decade.

In Canada, the Senate approval of Bill C-45 legalized the production, distribution and use of recreational cannabis, with edibles to be added in 2019. The bill officially became law as of Oct. 17, 2018, creating a legal framework for the production, distribution, sale and possession of cannabis across Canada including cannabinoid-infused beverages.

Phivida Brands

  • Vida+: Vida+ is the company's premium, clinical-grade-strength, full-spectrum hemp oil extract and capsule line designed to help people feel their best. The products are sourced from the best organic hemp and natural ingredients on the market and are third-party lab tested for quality, purity and potency at world-class facilities.
  • Oki: The Oki lifestyle brand is the company's newly launched line of functional beverages and supplements infused with active hemp extract and will be available to consumers in up to 2,400 natural specialty store locations within the United States. Oki beverages are infused with 10 milligrams of active hemp extract per bottle and come in two different formulations: iced teas and flavor-infused water, each available in four different 16-ounce flavors. Oki supplements are available in tinctures or capsules that range in doses from 600-1,800 total milligrams of active hemp extract.
  • All products contain non-GMO, natural and organic ingredients and are plant-based and vegan friendly and packaged in sleek, 100 percent recyclable glass containers.

WeedMD-Phivida Joint Venture

Phivida has partnered with WeedMD Inc. (TSX-V: WMD) (OTC:WDDMF) (FSE:4WE), a Health Canada federally licensed producer and distributor of medical cannabis, to form a joint venture focused on manufacturing, marketing and distributing cannabinoid-infused beverages. CanBev is on track to build and operate the first cannabis-infused beverage production facilities in Canada. The joint venture will focus on manufacturing, marketing and distributing cannabinoid-infused beverages for the legalized medical and adult-use cannabis markets. WeedMD will be the exclusive cannabis supplier and distributor for CanBev cannabis-infused beverages. Phivida will be responsible for product innovation, research and development, formulation and branding.

Strategic Agreements

Phivida has an exclusive national agreement with Natural Specialty Sales ("NSS"), an Acosta company. NSS is recognized as the industry leader in natural/specialty retail channel trade across the U.S. Phivida's launched OKI brand of premium CBD products is now the exclusive CBD-infused beverage and health supplements products brand represented by NSS. This establishes Phivida as the first CBD brand company to officially cross over into national mainstream distribution across the U.S., providing new access to over 2,400 retail locations in a major distribution channel market valued at over USD $4.1 billion in retail sales.

The NSS exclusive agreement provides access to a national network of retail stores across the U.S. This national network includes major retail banners such as: Whole Foods Market, Sprouts Farmers Market, National Coop Grocers, etc. The partnership also provides the opportunity to access an additional 25,000 national conventional grocery supermarkets, including Walmart, Target, Kroger, Publix and others, via Acosta's national sales network.

Plus Products Inc. (CSE: PLUS) (OTCQB: PLPRF)

chart

Plus Products Inc. (CSE: PLUS) (OTCQB: PLPRF) is a branded cannabis-infused products manufacturer of edibles created to support a healthy and active lifestyle. Headquartered in San Mateo, California, PLUS™ concentrates on producing edibles using extracts to ensure compliant, dosable and delicious products that provide a consistent cannabis experience.

First introduced to the market in 2015 to rave reviews, PLUS™ is now one of the top best-selling edible brands in California. PLUS™ operates through a wholly owned subsidiary, Carberry, and has four cannabis-infused gummy candy SKUs (in addition to limited edition SKUs), that are currently sold in over 200 licensed dispensaries and delivery services. All products under the PLUS™ brand are produced in the company's 12,000-square-foot food-safe cannabis manufacturing facility in Adelanto, California.

PLUS Products shares are currently listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange. PLUS™ raised CAD$20 million through the offering, for which the lead underwriters were PI Financial and Canaccord Genuity. The company intends to use a portion of the IPO proceeds to fund rapid product capacity expansion, factory automation, working capital and new product development.

Operating in the largest adult-use recreational market in the U.S., PLUS Products holds a temporary manufacturing license in California and was one of the first brands to bring fully compliant products to the legal market. California legalized adult use recreational sales on Jan. 1, 2018, and industry analysts expect edible sales there will continue to amass enviable revenues. According to BDS Analytics, edibles made up 18 percent of marijuana retail sales in February 2018 across licensed retailers in California, with PLUS™ products ranking in the Top 10 of edible brands by retail dollar sales.

During the first half of 2018, PLUS Products generated US$2.45 million in sales, a marked improvement over 2017's US$1.07 million in sales. The company's established cannabis products are not only compliant with state laws, they are proving to be extremely popular with consumers. Among the PLUS™ product brands are:

  • Blackberry & Lemon RESTORE, an infusion of carefully dosed cannabis with a 9:1 THC to CBD per gummy.
  • Sour Watermelon UPLIFT, a low-calorie gummy crafted from carefully dosed cannabis with an infusion of 5mg THC per gummy.
  • Pineapple & Coconut CBD RELIEF, a tropical flavor gummy made from pure cannabis-derived CBD that is low-calorie, gluten-free and made with kosher ingredients.
  • Sour Blueberry CREATE, a low-calorie gummy infused with hybrid flower containing 5 mg THC.
  • Limited Edition Rose & Vanilla, available at select locations during Winter 2018, these gummies are crafted with 60 mg THC/30 mg CBD per tin.
  • Limited Edition RAINBOW SORBET gummies was created to celebrate Pride during Spring 2018 with a portion of each purchase donated to The Trevor Project, a confidential suicide hotline for LGBT youth.

"We are extremely proud of the products PLUS has brought to market," remarked Jake Heimark, CEO and cofounder in a statement. "We've quickly grown into one of the leading edible brands in California. With the proceeds of this round, we will continue to further our mission: to make cannabis safe and approachable for all types of consumers."

The PLUS™ team believes that everyone deserves access to consistent, dosable and delicious cannabis products and strives to make that happen. Producing the best infused products at scale requires thoughtful collaboration among experts in many fields. At PLUS™, our team is comprised of Chefs, Chemists, Food Manufacturing Experts, Engineers, Machinists, Visionaries, Creatives, Strategists and others.

Pressure BioSciences Inc. (PBIO)

chart

Pressure BioSciences Inc. (PBIO) develops, markets and sells proprietary laboratory instrumentation and associated consumables to the life sciences sample preparation market. Sample preparation refers to the wide range of activities that precede most forms of scientific analysis. It is often complex and time-consuming, yet a critical part of scientific research. The market for sample preparation products is currently estimated at $6 billion worldwide.

The Company's product line can be used to exquisitely control the sample preparation process. It is based on a patented, enabling technology platform called pressure cycling technology ("PCT"). PCT uses alternating cycles of hydrostatic pressure between ambient (14.5 psi) and ultra-high levels (up to 100,000 psi) to safely and reproducibly control critical biological processes, such as the lysis (breakage) of cells, the digestion of proteins, and the inactivation of pathogens.

Pressure BioSciences' product line is led by its newly released, next-generation Barocycler 2320EXTREME instrument. Named a finalist in the prestigious 2017 R&D Awards (also known as the "Oscars of Innovation"), the Barocycler 2320EXT is already being touted by some key opinion leaders as an essential element of the $1.8 billion U.S. "Cancer Moonshot" program. For example, Professor Phil Robinson, Co-head of the cancer research center of the Children's Medical Research Institute (Sydney, Australia), said in a recent interview: "We are collecting the whole proteome on 70,000 tumor samples from all classes where complete clinical outcome is known. Due to its unique capabilities, the Barocycler 2320EXT has become a critical part of our program. It is the primary enabler of the high-throughput component of the project. Without this step, our project simply could not be done. In fact, the Barocycler 2320EXT works so well we have just purchased two more."

Momentum is building when it comes to the potential for using the Company's unique PCT technology platform. Leading scientists are intrigued by Pressure BioSciences' approach, which among other attributes, revolutionizes the process of rupturing cells (lysis) for further study, yielding superior biomolecules for investigation. The Company's technology transcends current methods of breaking open cells, which use chemicals, blades, metal beads, or other damaging and altering methods that can ultimately adversely affect the result for researchers. Pressure BioSciences' PCT technology utilizes customized, controlled hydrostatic (water) pressure to rupture cells in a chamber, enabling exquisitely customized levels of pressure to optimally break open different types of cells at prescribed pressure levels—something never before accomplished in a commercial setting. Using this pioneering method, the result is a truer, more legitimate sample, which boosts the efficacy of research and the quality of results. The potential impact of this technology on scientific advancement is enormous, enabling research scientists to begin their studies with biological samples of unprecedented integrity, with the potential to improve research outcomes at the earliest, most critical step. PCT can additionally inactivate pathogens (e.g., viruses, bacteria) using hydrostatic pressure, making the samples safer to study—another innovation with astronomical potential for application in a variety of markets.

The Company's high-pressure instruments for research purposes are marketed throughout the United States, Europe, China and Japan. To date, Pressure BioSciences has installed nearly 300 PCT Systems in over 165 leading academic, government, biotech and pharma laboratories around the world. Its primary applications are in biomarker discovery, forensics, agriculture and pathology. Over 100 scientific papers have been published on the advantages of the PCT platform, which is also being used in the specialized fields of drug discovery and design, bio-therapeutics characterization, soil and plant biology, vaccine development and histology.

Impressive as their biotech business is, there is more to the PBI story. Pressure BioSciences recently received two patents in China for its novel Ultra Shear Technology (UST), a process that has potential in a wide range of industrial applications, including extending the shelf life of some food products and making two insoluble liquids (like oil in water) soluble. Patents have also been filed in many other countries worldwide. UST is a novel technique based on the use of intense shear forces generated from ultra-high-pressure valve discharge.

This important technology has the potential to play a significant role in a number of commercially important areas through its ability to create high-quality, stable nanoemulsions. Scientific studies indicate that improved absorption, higher bioavailability, greater stability, lower surfactant levels and other advantages can be achieved with nanoemulsions – all hugely important factors in the fields of nutraceuticals, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and in various medical products. There is an enormous opportunity in the cannabis market, since the technology can potentially reduce oil droplets containing cannabidiol (CBD) to nanoparticles, after which they can be safely suspended in a stable water solution—something many companies have endeavored to achieve without success. Researchers looking for a way to increase the bioavailability of cannabinoids in the body will find this technology a game changer.

The Company's UST technology also has possibilities in the production of clean label foods, which are currently processed using several innovative methods, including high-pressure treatments (such as Starbucks' Evolution line of juices). In 2015, the worldwide market for high-pressure processed (HPP) food was estimated at U.S. $10 billion. UST uses ultra-high pressures and certain valves to generate intense shear forces under controlled temperature conditions to produce nanoemulsions, and which also significantly reduces food-borne pathogens. Pressure BioSciences' initial focus with this technology will be to evaluate UST for the production of high-quality dairy products and beverages.

QMC Quantum Minerals Corp. (OTC: QMCQF) (TSX-V: QMC) (FSE: 3LQ)

chart

QMC Quantum Minerals Corp. (OTC: QMCQF) (TSX-V: QMC) is a British Columbia based company engaged in the business of acquisition, exploration and development of natural resource properties. QMC's focus is on creating shareholder value through strategic acquisition and development of high quality lithium, silver, gold, nickel, copper and zinc prospects.

QMC's current properties are in the Canadian province of Manitoba, one of Canada's most productive, centrally located mining regions. These resources include the Irgon Lithium Mine project and two Volcanic Massive Sulphide ("VMS") properties – the Rocky Lake and Rocky-Namew known collectively as the Namew Lake District Project – which contain base metal-rich mineral deposits. Excellent access and well-developed mining infrastructure to the company's wholly-owned Irgon Lithium Mine Project offers significant value and ramps up the near-term production schedule, putting QMC in a position to take advantage of rising lithium prices.

The region's historic resource estimate of lithium is well documented in a 1956 Assessment Report developed by a previous owner, Lithium Corporation of Canada Ltd. The project's historical resource estimate of 1.2 million tons grading 1.51% lithium-oxide over a strike length of 365 meters and to a depth of 213 meters is being updated by QMC through a detailed channel sampling and subsequent drill program.

North Face Software Ltd. recently created an interactive 3-D model of the Irgon Dike utilizing all historical data derived from past drilling and underground work. The 3-D model clearly demonstrates that exploration and underground development has only taken place on the central portion of the dike, leaving significant potential to quickly increase tonnage.

The company's latest assay results, obtained from 144 channel samples at QMC's Irgon Lithium Mine Project, provided encouraging and positive results that compare favorably with the historic assays. QMC has received a drill permit from the Sustainable Development Office of the Manitoba government and is in the process of requesting and assessing bids from drilling contractors. The company plans to begin a 2,000-meter drill program to confirm the historic lithium oxide assay results documented in the historic 1953-54 drill program.

QMC's experienced leadership team includes specialists in mineral exploration, geology, engineering, new business development, marketing and investor relations. The company's team of qualified advisors includes consultant Bruce E. Goad, P.Geo., who has 40 years of experience in mineral exploration in Canada, Argentina, Asia and Africa. As a Qualified Person, Goad has worked on numerous deposit styles including rare element pegmatites, porphyry, banded iron formation (BIF) gold deposits, skarn, greisens,  and VMS. He has a wide and varied skill set which includes precious, base, industrial and rare metal projects with a sharp focus on gold exploration. Goad is the author of several scholarly publications on pegmatite granites of the southeastern Manitoba region.

The market for lithium has surged over the past three years with prices per metric ton tripling. The world's rising demand for portable power can easily been seen in the electric vehicle and mobile device industries – both of which use lithium-based, renewable batteries as a power resource. QMC's high potential prospects and experienced management team, both in geology and corporate finance, put QMC and its shareholders in an excellent position to take advantage of the lithium, precious and base metals markets.

Redfund Capital Corp. (CSE: LOAN) (OTC: PNNRF) (Frankfurt: O3X4)

chart

Redfund Capital Corp. (CSE: LOAN) (OTC: PNNRF) (Frankfurt: O3X4) is a merchant bank focused on providing debt and equity funding in the mid to late stages of a target company's development and for technologies that are developed and validated by revenues. Redfund's current focus is on medical cannabis, hemp and cannabidiol (CBD) related and healthcare-related companies.

As the first medical cannabis incubator and accelerator financing medical cannabis, CBD and hemp companies through a debt facility, Redfund is effectively bridging finance gaps and helping revenue-producing medical cannabis-related companies grow and build their valuations without prematurely diluting their equity.

The central components of the company's business strategy are:

  • Establishing the foundation of a loan portfolio that generates revenues through monthly interest income from loans to cover all general and administrative expenses related to day-to-day operations.
  • Growing shareholder value by converting all or part of loans and warrants into equity in portfolio clients as clients build their valuations by entering the public markets or becoming the high-priced targets of larger entities.

Redfund was designed by bankers and entrepreneurs possessing years of experience in business, consulting, capital markets, corporate finance and healthcare services. The company is actively looking beyond borders and creating global companies that have strong fundamentals and are ready to expand.

Redfund's investments are deployed to companies that have demonstrated success in their business but need a capital bridge in order to expand. Redfund's team of professionals vet every project and analyzes each prospective client's financials and business plans. Once a project is approved, Redfund's legal team carefully scrutinizes the collateral used to securitize the individual loans.

The strategy employed by Redfund includes:

  • Diversifying investments in Canada and other countries
  • Building an international footprint with established national leaders
  • Funding new drug delivery systems and helping nutraceuticals become mainstream drugs
  • Introducing companies to Canada as a viable option for public listings
  • Becoming a premier go-to lender for established companies

The company's revenue sources include:

  • Interest-bearing debt instruments with asset-backed collateral to securitize loans
  • Equity kicker of warrants coverage on original loan
  • Conversion ability of loan in its entirety
  • Advisory fees from contracts for consulting on growth strategies
  • Right of first refusal on future financing in each company funded

Sharing Services, Inc. (SHRV)

chart

Sharing Services, Inc. (SHRV), headquartered in Plano, Texas, is a diversified holdings company focused on reshaping how entrepreneurs succeed today. Sharing Services Inc. owns, operates or controls an interest in a variety of companies specializing in the direct selling industry that either sell products to the consumer directly through independent representatives or offer services that range from health and wellness, energy, technology, insurance services, training, media and travel benefits. SHRV has created the "Blue Ocean Strategy," which melds three keys together to implement the company's vision. These keys include elevating home-based entrepreneurs, known as "Elepreneurs," utilizing the direct selling channel to generate 100 percent organic growth.

Sharing Services Inc. subsidiaries include:

  • A growing international network of home-based entrepreneurs, called "Elepreneurs"
  • Growing selection of health and wellness products dedicated to elevating the well-being of all people
  • Insurance from auto, home and life to health benefit discounts and health insurance that help families elevate their options
  • Wholesale travel and payment programs with travel concierges that empower more families to go on vacation
  • Live seminars and training events – from Vacationars™ to EduTainment – that elevate the skills and knowledge of entrepreneurs around the world
  • Unique compensation and reward programs crafted to help entrepreneurs elevate their health, wealth and happiness

Sharing Services recently expanded its corporate footprint by moving to a 10,000 square foot facility in Plano, Texas, that offers room to expand as the company grows and its subsidiaries flourish. The larger corporate locale provides space for a growing customer service department, product fulfillment, opportunity and training rooms, as well as a video production suite.

"The opportunity to expand to the rest of this new building over the course of the next six to 12 months ensures we won't have to move again anytime soon," Sharing Services Inc. Chairman Robert Oblon said. "We are on track for very significant growth here in the U.S., as well as upcoming international expansion, so this move is in preparation for what's in front of us."

The company recently signed a joint venture agreement with Health Wealth & Happiness Limited ("HWH") to expand its "Elepreneurs" brand and market its products throughout Asia. The newly formed company will be named "Elepreneurs Asia Limited" and will have marketing and sales rights to China, Hong Kong, Macau, South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Papua, New Guinea. A soft launch of the Elepreneur program is scheduled sometime later in 2018 with HWH CEP Fai Chan and his team leading the effort. Formed in Hong Kong, Health Wealth & Happiness Limited is dedicated to working with visionary partners like Sharing Services Inc. to deliver the best products and services to improve the well-being of consumers.

Nearly 1,000 people attended Sharing Services, Inc.'s first "Elepreneur Happiness Convention," held March 2-3, 2018, in Dallas, Texas. Attendees arrived from several countries including the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Singapore and Hong Kong. Keynote speakers included several internationally known motivational leaders –  Shawn Achor, Sandra Yancey, John Fleming and Les Brown – who provided exceptional material and inspirational discussion points.

"The enthusiasm of our attendees and the early success that we are experiencing is incredible considering our growth has been 100 percent organic, with almost no marketing from the company," Oblon said. "I'm speechless by the dedication of our Elepreneur leaders and their entire teams, as they share our incredible line of products that have helped so many people."

Sharing Services and its management team plan to travel the U.S. to hold several mini conferences to expand on the messages presented at its Happiness Convention that focus on helping people become "healthier, happier and wealthier." Details of the company's aggressive global expansion initiatives are soon to be announced, Oblon said.

The law firm of Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP has been retained as outside corporate counsel for all general business matters. The Dallas-based law firm will represent Sharing Services, Inc., and its subsidiaries as the company utilizes the direct selling channel for a significant component of its overall growth strategy.

John "JT" Thatch was appointed president and chief executive officer of Sharing Services, Inc., at a March 1, 2018, annual shareholder meeting. Thatch has successfully started, owned and operated several sized businesses in various industries. His experience with corporate growth, acquisitions, financing and negotiation in fast-paced and flexible environments will significantly assist Sharing Services Inc. as the company aims to expand and increase revenues.

SinglePoint, Inc. (SING)

chart

SinglePoint, Inc. (SING) is a diversified holding company with operations in multiple industries and verticals including two high-performing market sectors: legal cannabis and cryptocurrencies. SinglePoint has grown from a full-service mobile technology provider to a recognizable brand with a diverse portfolio of undervalued subsidiaries with multiple revenue streams.

SinglePoint is researching opportunities where it can be an active participant by influencing the strategy and direction of high-potential companies whose verified assets offer attractive possibilities for shareholders. The company is guided by a visionary leadership team with extensive experience in technology, engineering, marketing and raising capital.

SinglePoint is bullish on the cannabis industry, bitcoin and blockchain technologies, which is evident in its recent acquisitions and joint-venture announcements. Recent SinglePoint key highlights include:

  • A joint venture with Smart Cannabis Corporation (OTC: SCNA) to license and market Smart Cannabis' SMART APP. SMART APP enables cannabis growers to measure all aspects of cultivation, from soil nutrient levels to watering cycles and carbon dioxide content in the air. SMART APP will integrate SinglePoint's bitcoin payment solution to enable growers to process safer and more secure transactions.
  • A joint venture with Global Payout (OTC: GOHE) will build on existing financial technology solutions developed by SinglePoint and Global Payout's subsidiary MoneyTrac Technology, Inc., to fully optimize the delivery of mobile payment applications for domestic and international organizations.
  • A joint venture with AppSwarm (OTC: SWRM) to start development on a proprietary delivery application that will enable licensed cannabis delivery services and licensed dispensaries to safely make in-home cannabis deliveries.
  • Signed original "Shark Tank" member Kevin Harrington as company spokesman for an innovative, compatible virtual wallet to store any type of cryptocurrency. Harrington recently finished shooting a new national ad campaign featuring SinglePoint and the virtual wallet's secure method of storing cryptocurrencies.
  • Entered into a letter of intent to acquire 100 percent of Bitcoin Beyond, a premier platform that enables merchants to accept bitcoin payments using existing web-enabled point-of-sale devices.
  • Through SING subsidiary, SingleSeed, the company will soon offer a proprietary cryptocurrency solution that links both cannabis merchants and consumers who seek to take advantage of bitcoin-powered transactions using debit and credit cards. In addition to making bitcoin-backed card purchases possible, the solution enables cannabis dispensaries to digitally track and manage their product inventories, performing tasks like uploading product data, photos and descriptions. The system deducts items automatically from a dispensary's product listings when a purchase is made. While this fully KYC-AML compliant point-of-sale platform can be utilized for any other retail setting, it will fill a critical need in the underbanked cannabis industry as it continues to seek non-cash payment solutions outside of traditional banking circles.

SinglePoint CEO and founder Greg Lambrecht leads the company in its mission to capture opportunities through an aggressive expansion strategy across a broad range of assets. Lambrecht oversees all company operations including investor relations, leadership of the board of directors, and daily business activities. As the founder of PCI, a leading consumer product distribution company, Lambrecht negotiated agreements with the nation's largest retail outlets and led PCI through a NASDAQ listed IPO, raising $10 million.

Eric Lofdahl, SinglePoint's chief technology officer, has more than 20 years of experience in the technology sector including positions in software development, program management, complex system integration and engineering process definition. Prior to SinglePoint, Lofdahl worked at the Boeing Company where he led a team that successfully developed advanced wireless and satellite data products based on commercial technology for the U.S. Air Force.

SinglePoint President Wil Ralston is well known for his successful track record of building and maintaining great relationships with clients. Ralston graduated cum laude from the WP Carey School of Business at Arizona State University with a degree in Global Agribusiness and a specialization in Professional Golf Management. He is currently recognized by the Professional Golfers Association of America (PGA) as a Class A Professional.

Spectrum Global Solutions, Inc. (SGSI)

chart

Spectrum Global Solutions, Inc. (SGSI) is a leading single-source provider of end-to-end, next-generation wireless and wireline network infrastructure services and staffing solutions to the service provider (carrier) and corporate enterprise markets across the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, Guam and the Caribbean. Spectrum Global Solutions provides services directly to carriers, aggregators, utilities, enterprise, Project Management Organizations (PMO) and Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) clientele through the following subsidiaries:

  • AW Solutions, Inc. and AW Solutions Puerto Rico, LLC – Provides best-in-class communications infrastructure deployment services to carriers, OEMs, PMOs, utilities and enterprise clients by offering discrete and full turnkey service solutions for wireless and wireline clientele. AW Solutions holds professional engineering licenses in all contiguous states and in the District of Columbia and Hawaii; the Canadian provinces of British Columbia, Quebec, Ontario, Alberta and Newfoundland and Labrador; in Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
  • ADEX Corporation and ADEX Puerto Rico, LLC – An international service organization providing turnkey services and staffing solutions to telecommunications carriers and enterprise clients. Since 1993, ADEX has been assisting telecommunications companies throughout the project life cycle of any network deployment. ADEX and its service capabilities extend from the most basic installation functions to the most advanced engineering disciplines for today and tomorrow's communications networks. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, ADEX employs technical professionals and provides infrastructure services worldwide via domestic and international locations.
  • Tropical Communications, Inc. – A state licensed electrical and underground utility contractor headquartered in Miami, Florida, providing all types of communications and infrastructure facility structured wiring services and solutions since 1984.

Through its subsidiaries, Spectrum Global Solutions is a comprehensive single-source provider for professional services and solutions for the development, deployment and maintenance of wireless/Distributed Antenna System (DAS)/small cell/wireline and fiber networks and infrastructure. The company's services range in scope from a single activity to multiyear, multi-region, large-scale turnkey development contracts with a deepening pool of international, national, regional and local projects. Spectrum Global Solutions has completed more than 150,000 project activities on wireless, DAS, wireline and fiber networks across the United States utilizing licensed professional engineers, project managers, technicians and general contractors.

Market Opportunity

Growth projections for the telecom industry show a high growth cycle 2018 through 2025 with a four-fold increase in domestic mobile data traffic and up to $150 billion in fiber investment over the next 5-7 years (Deloitte, 2017). The worldwide explosion of smart phones, tablets and BYOD by customers demanding rapid deployment of new apps, private networks with better coverage and enhanced capacity provides a compelling enterprise opportunity market. The imminent rollout of 5G next generation networks, IOT (Internet-Of-Things) technology deployments, the FirstNet national public safety system, small cell/network densification, Dish Network Deployment, fiber and infrastructure network builds for backhaul and expanded deployments, new FCC spectrum auctions and upgrades to 4G, DAS and small cell networks are contributing to a projected $157 billion in U.S. telecommunication carrier capital expenditures by 2021.

Management

CEO Roger Ponder has served as a director of Spectrum Global Solutions since April 2017. Ponder served as President/CEO of Summit Capital Advisors, LLC, and Summit Broadband, LLC a provider of consulting services to private equity and institutional banking entities in the telecommunications, cable and media/internet sectors. He also served as a member of the board of directors of InterCloud Systems, Inc. and served as its Chief Operating Officer from November 2012 to March 2015. Prior to that Ponder retired from Time Warner Kansas City Division as President/CEO. Ponder brings extensive business development, strategic planning and operational experience to the Company.

Keith Hayter is President of Spectrum Global Solutions and has served as a director of the Company since April 2017. Hayter has also served as the Chief Executive Officer and President of AW Solutions Inc. and AW Solutions Puerto Rico LLC since November 2006. He was Vice President and General Manager of Alcoa Wireless Services from 2001-2006. Hayter served in both the U.S. and British armies and brings extensive multi-national experience in the start-up, development, management and growth of companies in the telecommunication, engineering and construction industry.

Sproutly Canada, Inc. (OTCQB: SRUTF) (CSE: SPR) (FRA: 38G)

chart

Sproutly Canada, Inc. (OTCQB: SRUTF) (CSE: SPR) (FRA: 38G) is developing and bringing to market cannabis consumer products with a focus on beverages. The company's core mission is to become the leading supplier of water-soluble cannabis solutions and bio-natural oils for brands in the emerging cannabis beverage and edibles market.

To make this happen, Sproutly acquired Infusion Biosciences to bring to market a patent-pending Aqueous Phytorecovery Process (APP) technology, a fundamental paradigm shift within the cannabis industry. Replacing traditional water-compatible solutions with true natural water solubility improves the body's ability to utilize cannabinoids, making the effect of the cannabis almost immediate.

This revolutionary process doesn't alter the cannabis compounds and provides an onset time and offset time that mimics the same effects as inhaled marijuana. That means consumers may feel effects in five minutes or less and be free from the desired effect in approximately 90 minutes—a vastly different ingestion pattern than current methods. In addition, the water-based cannabinoids can be mixed with other liquids and stay dissolved in those liquids. The application of water-soluble cannabis infusions has potential to be widespread in both medicinal and recreational cannabis sectors, giving Sproutly a distinctive edge in a market with untapped potential.

Sproutly's business model is focused on processing rather than cultivating, which means its success is not constrained to growing its own cannabis. The company does own a Toronto-based, ACMPR-licensed facility designed and built with a focus on cultivating pharmaceutical-grade cannabis to produce and formulate the first natural, truly water-soluble cannabis solution. Its water-soluble ingredients and bio-natural oils will deliver revolutionary brands to international markets that are searching for well-defined commercial products.

Sproutly's entrance in the cannabis market is perfectly timed as cannabis is moving towards mainstream acceptance. Potential users are, however, interested in consuming cannabis products as drinks and using it as oils rather than smoking. The potential cannabis beverage market is staggering, and with Sproutly owning the exclusive rights to APP technology in Canada, Australia, Jamaica, Israel and the entire European Union, the company is looking at significant international expansion opportunities.

Sproutly plans to capitalize on these international opportunities by executing on partnerships with local and globally established consumer brands to leverage their existing customer bases, expand brand loyalty, and assist with marketing and support distribution networks to deliver scientific breakthroughs with speed and efficiency worldwide.

Management

Sproutly believes that talent drives growth. The company is committed to bringing together the best and brightest minds in the cannabis space to help with their mission to disrupt the global beverage and consumables market.

President, CEO and Director Keith Dolo recently served for more than 13 years with Robert Half, an S&P 500, NYSE-listed company. At Robert Half, Dolo held the position of vice president for more than eight years, as well as other senior roles in both operations and sales. He also sits on an advisory committee and a board position for two nonprofits in Vancouver, BC.

Chief Science Officer and Director Dr. Arup Sen has more than 35 years of experience in research and executive management at biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. He was awarded a PhD in biochemistry from Princeton University and is a former faculty member at the National Cancer Institute and Scripps Research Institute. Sen is the inventor on five U.S. patents and numerous international patents and patent-pending applications.

Chief Financial Officer Craig Loverock is a chartered professional accountant with over 20 years of experience in accounting and finance roles in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. He has extensive expertise in public company reporting and transactional experience, having served as the senior financial advisor to the chairman at Magna International and acting as chief compliance officer and CFO for a private equity firm.

Head Grower Frank Han has over 12 years of experience in the horticulture industry. A previous master grower in a large commercial facility, Han has impressive expertise in all growing methods, techniques and procedures. He brings with him a wealth of knowledge in cloning, nutrient and overall plant management. Han will be in charge of the production team at Sproutly's Toronto Herbal Remedies facility.

Standard Lithium Ltd. (TSX.V: SLL) (FRA: S5L) (OTC: STLHF)

chart

Standard Lithium Ltd. (TSX.V: SLL) (FRA: S5L) (OTC: STLHF) is focused on unlocking the value of existing large-scale U.S.-based lithium brine resources that can quickly be brought into production. The Company believes new lithium production can rapidly be brought on stream by minimizing project risks at selection stage; resource, political & geographic, and regulatory & permitting; and by leveraging advances in lithium extraction technologies and processes.

The Company's flagship project is in southern Arkansas. The more than 180,000-acre "Smackover Project" is in the most prolific and productive brine processing region in North America. Agreements with large commercial brine operators in the region will allow Standard Lithium to utilize the extensive existing infrastructure, including brine supply and disposal pipelines, water, power and a trained workforce to fast-track project development timelines.

"Arkansas produces about 9.4 billion gallons of brine per year, according to 2010-2016 average statistics reported by the Arkansas Oil & Gas Commission."

Standard Lithium signed a binding MoU with global specialty chemicals company LANXESS Corporation and its U.S. affiliate Great Lakes Chemical Corporation with the purpose of demonstrating the commercial viability of extraction of lithium from brine ("tail brine") that is produced as part of LANXESS' bromine extraction business at its three Southern Arkansas facilities.

LANXESS' land operations in Southern Arkansas encompass more than 150,000 acres, 10,000 brine leases and surface agreements and 250 miles of pipelines. LANXESS extracts the brine from its wells located throughout the area, and the brine is transported to the three Arkansas plants through a network of pipelines. The three bromine extraction plants currently employ approximately 500 people and process and reinject several hundred thousand barrels of brine per day.

Standard Lithium has developed a breakthrough rapid lithium extraction process that reduces the recovery time of extracting lithium from brine to as little as several hours vs. the current industry method that takes years. The process is also much more environmentally friendly with a significantly smaller footprint than the conventional processes. The company has a signed agreement to locate a demonstration scale lithium extraction plant inside one of LANXESS' chemical plants in Southern Arkansas.

The Company has also signed an option agreement with NYSE-listed Tetra Technologies for the lithium rights for exploration, extraction, and possible commercial development on approximately 30,000 acres of brine leases in Southern Arkansas. The largest available land package.

Recent laboratory results of four brine samples recovered from two existing wells in Standard Lithium's project area showed lithium concentrations ranging between 347-461 mg/L lithium, with an average of 450 mg/L lithium in one of the wells and 350 mg/L in the other. Geological modeling of the project area is complete, and a maiden resource report is on the horizon.

Market Opportunity

World demand for lithium continues to surge. The global lithium compounds market is projected to reach U.S. $5.87 billion by 2020 at a compound annual growth rate of 13.22% between 2015 and 2020. Lithium-ion batteries are the fastest growing segment of the market.

Leadership

Standard Lithium's commitment to being a premier, innovation-driven company focused on developing and commercializing new modern processes for lithium extraction is bolstered by the leading experts that comprise the company's Scientific Advisory Council. Each member was selected because of their experience and expertise in areas that are central to and/or complement Standard Lithium's current development plans. Standard Lithium recently welcomed to the Council world-renowned chemist Dr. Barry Sharpless, the recipient of the 2001 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work on chirally catalyzed oxidation reactions.

Standard Lithium is led by a team of professionals with proven strong technical and project development skills. CEO Robert Mintak has a global network of industry contacts and is a pioneer in the rapidly evolving lithium space. COO and President Dr. Andy Robinson is an experienced geoscientist with 20+ years of experience and a PhD in Geochemistry from the University of Bristol, UK. Dr. Robinson has worked on a wide range of projects in the resource, power and energy sectors in Europe, Africa, and North and South America.

The company recently appointed Robert Cross as non-executive chairman. Cross is an engineer with 25 years of experience as a financier and company builder in the mining and oil and gas sectors. He co-founded and serves as chairman of B2Gold, a top-performing growing gold producer which is expected to achieve nearly 1 million ounces of low-cost gold production in 2018. He was also co-founder and chairman of Bankers Petroleum Ltd.; co-founder and chairman of Petrodorado Energy Ltd.; and until October 2007 was the non-executive chairman of Northern Orion Resources Inc. He also was previously the chairman and CEO of Yorkton Securities Inc., and a partner in investment banking with Gordon Capital Corp. in Toronto. Cross has an engineering degree from the University of Waterloo (1982) and received an MBA from Harvard in 1987.

Following a multi-million-dollar financing in Q1 2018, Standard Lithium is well-positioned to meet its upcoming milestones including two maiden resource reports and the launch of its breakthrough rapid lithium extraction technology.

Sugarmade, Inc. (SGMD)

chart

Sugarmade, Inc. (SGMD), one of the largest publicly traded hydroponics supply companies moving into the industrial hemp space, is a product and brand marketing company investing in products and brands with disruptive potential. Sugarmade's brands include: ZenHydro.com; CarryOutSupplies.com; and BudLife. Headquartered in Monrovia, California, a city within Los Angeles county, Sugarmade has various business operations in diverse marketplaces including packaging and paper goods for various industries, agricultural supplies.

Sugarmade has expanded into the European hydroponics supply market with a growing base of orders taken through Amazon UK. Over the past few financial quarters, Sugarmade has seen revenue growth patterns expand geographically. As recently as mid-2017, the majority of hydroponic-related revenue growth was seen from California and other West Coast marketplaces, however growth is becoming more geographically dispersed among U.S. states where legalization has eased restriction. This movement into the United Kingdom further expands the base of geographic growth areas for Sugarmade.

Sugarmade recently launched a new corporate initiative in the booming industrial hemp and CBD, committing up to $1 million in capital over the next 12 months to invest in Hempistry, Inc., a privately held Nevada corporation. Hempistry has begun planting an ultra-high cannabidiol (CBD) industrial hemp strain on a land option it holds on 23,000 acres of prime Kentucky farmland. The strain of industrial hemp being grown by Hempistry is ultra-rich in CBD but contains less than 0.3 percent of THC, the psychoactive ingredient found in cannabis. The U.S. hemp industry is expected to produce well over $1 billion in revenues in 2018, with a compound annual growth rate of 14 percent through 2022, according to the Hemp Business Journal.

Demand for industrial hemp and products derived from hemp is soaring, with no let-up in sight, which the company sees as a "tremendous opportunity to become a supplier to this fast-growing sector," said Chairman and CEO Jimmy Chan, who is also an advisor and minority shareholder of Hempistry.

Sugarmade's investment into the market for high-CBD hemp is expected to be highly accretive for common shareholders in two ways. First, Sugarmade's investment will be in the form of common shares in Hempistry allowing Sugarmade common shareholders to possibly benefit from any future initial public offering of Hempistry. Second, Sugarmade is expected to sign a supply agreement with Hempistry for cultivation supplies, which would be additive to corporate revenues.

Sugarmade has also completed a master market agreement with industry leader BizRight Hydroponics, Inc., a leading marketer and manufacturer of cannabis and hydroponic growth supplies, which offers a range of hydroponics-related products including: HPS grow lights, electronic ballasts, HPS bulbs, nutrient mixes, environmental control products, pH measurement and calibration solutions and storage products. BizRight operates the ZenHydro.com website and other e-commerce properties and sells various products to distributors and retailers. BizRight is expected to produce in excess of $30 million in revenues during 2017, with substantial growth expected for 2018.

Sugarmade division CarryOutSupplies.com, the leader in paper and plastic take-out supplies, serves nationwide customers by offering a wide array of high quality products that are cost-efficient, custom-made and delivered on time. This business unit currently serves 2,000 quick service restaurants, garnering from 30-40 percent of the market share. Sugarmade plans to expand operations via the addition of market share and the introduction of new product offerings.

Management

CEO Jimmy Chan is an experienced business executive instrumental in growing multiple business operations with a strong expertise in international trade and banking, and international manufacturing and importation. He is also the founder of CarryOutSupplies.com, a company that revolutionized the custom-printed paper supplies subsector of the quick service restaurant industry, which merged with Sugarmade in 2014.

Arman Tabatabaei serves as operations consultant, providing high-level, day-to-day strategic guidance and tactical operational supervision for all aspects of the corporation's business. He is an expert at data collection and analysis relative to resource management, risk forecasting and profit and loss management.

Sugarmade specializes in growing and acquiring innovative brands to maximize value for company employees, shareholders and other stakeholders. Sugarmade believes its future is very bright as the company expands operations within the cultivation sector and rapidly increases its revenue base.

Supreme Cannabis Company Inc. (TSX.V: FIRE) (OTC: SPRWF)

chart

Supreme Cannabis Company Inc. (TSX.V: FIRE) (OTC: SPRWF) is committed to providing premium brands and products that reflect the company's knowledgeable customers, passionate employees, and culture of innovation. Supreme Cannabis' mission is to grow the world's best cannabis and become a leader in the global industry. The company calls its Toronto Venture Exchange stock symbol FIRE "a testament to our passion for cannabis and our obsession with quality."

Supreme Cannabis believes the world is ready to follow Canada's lead by ending the 100-year cannabis prohibition and, as Canada's only coast-to-coast premium cannabis producer, the company sees itself at the center of this global shift.

In August 2018, Supreme Cannabis uplisted its shares to the to OTCQX market in the U.S., where the company trades under the ticker symbol SPRWF. The following month Supreme reported record Q4 revenues of CAD$3.55 million, a 71-percent increase over the previous quarter. Supreme Cannabis also recorded revenue of CAD$8.85 million for its fiscal year ended June 30, 2018, placing it among publicly traded Canadian cannabis companies with the highest reported revenue in their first four quarters of sales.

"As a result of the successful execution of our strategy, we have generated significant revenue growth both for the quarter and the year-end period," Supreme Cannabis CEO Navdeep Dhaliwal stated in a news release. "We look forward to building on this growth as we expand domestically and internationally."

The company's growth strategy includes key industry agreements, such as its CAD$12 million supply agreement with Tilray Inc. (OTC: TLRY), a global leader in cannabis research, cultivation, processing and distribution. The agreement calls for Supreme to supply Tilray with dried cannabis for support of medical cannabis patients in Canada for the period of one year.

Another key component is the company's wholly owned 7ACRES subsidiary. The 7ACRES cultivation facility, one of the first 40 federally licensed cannabis producers in Canada, is focused on building a core competency in scaled cannabis production, which will give 7ACRES the needed flexibility to maintain leadership in the industry as the Canadian market grows and matures. Though 7ACRES is Supreme Cannabis' flagship brand and only currently operating business unit, the company will continue to identify new opportunities to grow its portfolio of companies and build innovative cannabis businesses throughout the world.

7ACRES operates from a 342,000-square-foot cultivation facility in Kincardine, Ontario, and has been federally licensed since 2016. Current capacity is 13,333 kilograms dried cannabis annually, with plans to ramp up production by mid-2019 to a rate of 50,000 kilograms per year.

Supreme Cannabis seeks to differentiate 7ACRES from other licensed cannabis producers by producing premium quality product sustainably at scale. "Craft quality, commercial scale" is a slogan the company uses, and the Kincardine greenhouse employs state-of-the-art technology and cultivation best practices to strive toward that goal. Supreme identifies the quality of the 7ACRES product as the company's primary strength and says a shared "passion for the plant" is the driver of company culture. Six Canadian provinces have signed supply agreements with Supreme, a fact the company credits to the high quality of 7ACRES cannabis.

Its customers, Supreme Cannabis management says, are informed and discerning regarding cannabis, and they value a premium brand that respects their product knowledge. The company believes its high regard for customers, premium product quality, and mass cultivation capability has allowed Supreme Cannabis to emerge as Canada's preeminent premium cannabis producer. In the Canadian cannabis market, the company has established 7ACRES as a premium brand that's distributed coast-to-coast and commands premium pricing. The 7ACRES brand is already listed as premium cannabis product in all provinces that disclose their cannabis listing categories, and 7ACRES on average wholesales for up to one-third higher in price than other brands in the Canadian cannabis market.

To further its distribution, in the medical cannabis market Supreme Cannabis has partnered with several Canadian cannabis retailers including Aurora Cannabis, Emerald Health Botanicals, Namaste, Zenabis, and others. The company's investment portfolio also includes an equity position and long-term global distribution partnership with Medigrow, based in Lesotho, targeting the export of medical cannabis oil for the international market.

Supreme Cannabis seeks to make the company an innovator in the cannabis sector regarding design of cultivation facilities and development of operation excellence metrics. The management team is confident that the 7ACRES flagship brand, the company's proprietary technology and products, and the company's culture of passion for cannabis will deliver consistent long-term shareholder value.

Teewinot Life Sciences

Teewinot Life Sciences is an international biopharmaceutical company employing its patent-protected CannSynthesis® technology to biosynthesize cannabinoids for the large-scale manufacture of pharmaceutically pure cannabinoids including the varin series of compounds, which are only found in relatively small quantities in the cannabis plant. Teewinot's focus is on the biosynthetic production of pure, naturally-occurring cannabinoids, cannabinoid prodrugs and analog compounds by utilizing proprietary biocatalysis and synthetic biology for clinical development of FDA-approved pharmaceuticals. To date, Teewinot researchers have synthesized over 18 different naturally occurring cannabinoids in pharmaceutically pure form. The company employs its proprietary, disruptive technology to develop therapeutics for diseases identified as viable cannabinoid targets such as pain management, opioid addiction, oncology, psychiatric and central nervous system disorders, inflammation, and other drug development indications. Headquartered in Tampa, Florida, Teewinot is a global leader in the manufacturing and delivery of safe and standardized products containing cannabinoids, cannabinoid prodrugs, and cannabinoid analogs for diverse consumer markets. The company's wholly owned subsidiaries in Ireland and Canada, along with collaborations formed with key research institutions, consumer product companies, manufacturers, and local communities, combine cutting-edge scientific research on cannabinoids with an aggressive intellectual property portfolio to create new and improved patient therapies.

Teewinot Laboratories ("TLABS") is the center of all research for the company, operating Health Canada federally-licensed laboratories in both Vancouver, British Columbia, and Steinbach, Manitoba. The Vancouver laboratory has primary expertise in genomics, synthetic biology, organic chemistry, and molecular biology. It also provides services focused on the scaling and refinement of biosynthetic processes and outputs. The Steinbach laboratory provides services focused on formulation technologies, plant breeding (genetic development and engineering), and research analytics.

Teewinot Technologies Ltd. ("TTECH"), located in Dublin, Ireland, serves as the Intellectual Property repository and global patient filer for the Teewinot Life Sciences Group. TTECH is responsible for all IP management and is the contracted party for all licensing agreements. TTECH also services the company's global regulatory oversight group and provides accounting and audit services to the Teewinot family of companies.

Teewinot has licensed its CannSynthesis® technology for the commercial production of the first analytical standard of CBCA (cannabichromenic acid) and for the manufacture of a patient-protected prodrug of a cannabinoid. A prodrug is a molecule that after administration is metabolized into a pharmacologically active drug. Teewinot's cannabinoid prodrugs are designed to be more bioavailable and stable in the human body, thereby increasing their efficacy. Since the majority of cannabinoids are produced in very small quantities in the cannabis plant and are expensive to chemically synthesize, most cannabinoids have not been available for research and therapeutic applications. That has now changed with the development and commercial introduction of Teewinot's revolutionary technologies for the manufacture and formulation of cannabinoids in kilogram quantities. Teewinot's CannSynthesis® technology is able to take cannabinoid pharmaceuticals from theory to reality, facilitating regulatory compliance with its ability to deliver consistent and controlled dosages. Through its partnerships with leading universities and pharmaceutical companies, Teewinot is working to move the development of these proprietary compounds into clinics to provide novel patient therapies.

Teewinot enjoys commercial first-mover advantage in the field of cannabinoid biosynthesis with patents covering biosynthetic processes and equipment for the manufacture of cannabinoids, as well as water-soluble cannabinoid formulation technology. Teewinot's disciplined approach to research and development targets specific applications, which allows for customized product solutions and formulation challenges. Teewinot is available to assist commercial partners in the development or manufacture of new cannabinoid-based pharmaceuticals, prodrugs or analogs. For the first time, licensees will be able to manufacture commercial quantities of naturally-occurring cannabinoids and cannabinoid prodrugs that does not involve growing the cannabis plant or expensive chemical synthesis. Regulations and emerging technologies create significant impacts on the entire cannabis-related industry and companies that focus on cannabinoids provide investors with a rewarding path forward.

Teewinot has assembled a veteran management team with demonstrated success in leadership, growth, pharmaceutical development, marketing and aftermarket support. The organization includes a team of highly experienced scientists, business people, attorneys and other support personnel who are carefully aligning the intellectual property strategy with business goals and scientific developments. Teewinot President, Director and CEO Jeffrey M. Korentur is a co-founder of the company with more than 25 years of experience in leadership position in military and private sector roles. He is joined by Richard Peet, J.D., Ph.D., who serves as the chief intellectual property counsel; Bryan K. Brink, vice president of finance; Dr. Malcolm Kavarana, chief scientific officer and senior director intellectual property; and Eric A. Walker as chief information officer.

Teewinot's strengths lie in its commitment to innovative research that unlocks the medicinal properties found within the cannabis plant, its disciplined approach to research and development with targeted applications, and its determination to connect and collaborate with research institutions, consumer product companies, manufacturers, local communities, and team members. Teewinot's global technology and intellectual property represent a breakthrough in the creation and delivery of cannabinoid-based medicines and therapies.

The Flowr Corporation (TSX.V: FLWR) (OTC: FLWPF)

chart

The Flowr Corporation (TSX.V: FLWR) (OTC: FLWPF), a Health Canada Licensed Producer (LP) of cannabis under the Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations (ACMPR), is an emerging Canadian cannabis leader founded by Medreleaf co-founder Tom Flow and a team of industry pioneers, successful start-up executives and top industry scientists. Flowr's purpose-built cultivation facilities may be the most advanced in the industry, consistently generating high crop yields, delivering premium and ultra-premium cannabis products, and maximizing return on investment. The company also may be an R&D leader as it was selected by the Hawthorne Gardening Division of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company as its exclusive Canadian cannabis R&D partner.

Flowr's flagship facility, an 84,000-square-foot campus on seven acres in Kelowna, British Columbia, is engineered to grow premium cannabis in rooms that meet pharmaceutical industry production standards for cleanliness. This, along with exacting protocols designed by the Flowr team, enables Flowr to grow cannabis that meets Health Canada's stringent standards without treating it with the taste- and smell-killing gamma irradiation that most other producers have to use to clean their product. Irradiating the plant – a process similar to pasteurizing food – impairs many of the important terpenes that provide the positive effects, flavors and scents of cannabis while strengthening unpleasant terpenes. Flowr's products may deliver a better user experience, thus commanding premium prices.

Flowr's cultivation facilities, built with proprietary, patent-pending systems, are designed to deliver yields targeted at 450 grams per square foot by the end of 2022, which is three times more efficient than the industry average of approximately 150 grams per square foot. By optimizing yield, the Company may produce significantly more cannabis flower on a smaller footprint than other producers, thus generating far high revenue per square foot and keeping costs much lower, leading to higher margins. The Kelowna facility is presently 20 percent operational with the remaining 80 percent slated to come online by early 2019. It is expected to produce up to 14,000 kg of premium, non-irradiated cannabis flower in 2019. With further enhanced yields and planned expansion of production facilities on the campus, Flowr will reach a total capacity of 60,000 kg annually in 2022.

Leading Flowr's cultivation program is industry pioneer, company co-founder and Flowr president Tom Flow. Flow is widely recognized for his cannabis thought leadership and expertise building and operating cannabis cultivation facilities. Flow also co-founded MedReleaf and designed, built and set up SOPs for their flagship Marcum cultivation facility. Marcum has continued to be perhaps the most productive facility in the country prior to the Flowr flagship facility. Long one of Canada's most efficient and profitable LPs, MedReleaf was acquired by Aurora for approximately C$3 billion. Flow and his team have designed and built a total of 17 cultivation facilities and secured three producer's licenses under various Canadian regulatory regimes.

In March 2018, Flowr and the Hawthorne Gardening Division of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company – a world leader in lawn and garden products – announced an exclusive strategic R&D alliance. After evaluating numerous Canadian LPs, Hawthorne chose to partner with Flowr based on the experience and expertise of the company's cultivation and R&D teams and the company's advanced growing capabilities.

Hawthorne will fund the construction of a 50,000-square-foot R&D facility that is integrated into Flowr's Kelowna campus. This facility is North America's first dedicated cannabis R&D facility focused on advancing cultivation techniques and systems. The facility will support researchers from both organizations and combine laboratories, indoor and greenhouse grow suites, training areas and genetics breeding areas in a single building. It is expected to open in early 2019. In addition to helping Flowr maintain its competitive advantage in cultivation, the company's R&D program will keep it on the cutting edge of cannabis innovation.

Flowr is entering the market with three different brands to meet the growing demand for premium, non-irradiated cannabis in the medicinal and adult use markets:

  • FlowrRx, featuring premium quality medicinal cannabis that enables patients to live better, fuller lives. A dedicated Client Services team will provide patients with personalized support while an R&D team develops innovative flower strains and premium products targeted to specific conditions. Patient well-being is considered at every stage of the process – from genetic selection to harvest, trimming and curing techniques. FlowrRx and its team of passionate scientists and leading cultivation specialists are dedicated to advancing the scientific understanding of cannabis.
  • Flowr is the company's premium recreational adult-use brand featuring an active, West Coast-inspired lifestyle for the cannabis connoisseur and enthusiast market. Through the continuous innovation of procedures and practices, Flowr's talented team of experts is crafting premium products that deliver unparalleled experiences.
  • Ace Valley, an exclusive partnership with top-selling Ontario craft beer company Ace Hill, will bring Flowr's premium product to the millennial and casual adult-use markets under the Ace Valley brand.

Flowr recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the British Columbia Liquor Distribution Branch, the province's sole legal wholesaler of non-medical cannabis, to supply premium and ultra-premium flower to the province's retail outlets. The company has agreements with several major medical distributors and is in discussions about retail distribution with additional provinces where it believes it can obtain prices commensurate with the quality of the Flowr products. The company is also evaluating other market opportunities including export.

Flowr is poised to become the pre-eminent indoor premium cannabis grower in Canada and one of the country's top five LPs. The company's focus on yield, quality and price point and its team's ability to grow at scale should drive high margins, significant growth and strong return on investment.

The Green Organic Dutchman (TSX: TGOD) (OTC: TGODF)

chart

The Green Organic Dutchman (TSX: TGOD) (OTC: TGODF), whose principal location is in Hamilton, Ontario, produces farm grown, organic, pesticide-free medical cannabis in small batches using all natural, organic craft growing principles. TGOD is licensed under the Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations (ACMPR) to cultivate medical cannabis. The company carries out its principal activities producing cannabis pursuant to the provisions of the ACMPR and the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (Canada).

Committed to becoming the global leader in delivering organic cannabis solutions that enhance people's lives, TGOD consistently adheres to the highest levels of excellence. Its world-class management team includes a proven group of leaders with outstanding executive and operational experience specific to consumer packaged goods, consumer products, cannabis and finance industries.

TGOD is positioned as one of the highest quality and most cost efficient cannabis producers in Canada by leveraging innovative technology and low-cost power solutions. It holds one of the largest land packages under a single ACMPR license in Canada, providing future cannabis Agri-park style development and opportunities for joint ventures, licensing and distribution partners. Its industry leading alliance partners include Eaton, Ledcor Group and Hamilton Utilities Corp.

Eaton is the second largest power management company in the world and promises to supply innovative and cost effective power solutions to meet TGOD's growing demands. Construction management is supplied by Ledcor, Canada's second largest multidisciplinary construction company and a pioneer in the Green Building Industry. An alliance with Hamilton Utilities Corp allows TGOD to reduce its power costs from $0.13 per kWh to less than $0.05 per kWh. Greenhouse design is provided by Larssen Greenhouse, whose 25-plus years of experience in building some of the most modern and sophisticated greenhouses in the industry will provide TGOD with state of the art, climate-controlled hybrid greenhouse solutions.

Canada is quickly becoming a hub for cannabis investors with over $1.3 billion raised by Canadian companies to date. There are 58 licensed producers to service a population of 36 million and only two organic producers. TGOD, which holds licenses in Ontario and Quebec, is strategically located in both provinces that together claim 22 million Canadians as residents. Another estimated 57 million people live next door in six U.S. bordering states.

The Canadian cannabis market currently has a massive supply demand gap, which makes TGOD's expansion plans even more important to investors. These plans include a combined build-out capacity of 970,000 square feet, allowing TGOD to produce 116,000 kg annually of organic cannabis. Upon completion, Phase One in Hamilton, Ontario, which is fully funded, will provide 150,000 square feet of growing capacity capable of producing up to 14,000 kg of cannabis or $112 million in revenue at $8 a gram.

The company's Quebec expansion will be constructed on a recently secured 75-acre property near Montreal. This new property has a planned expansion of 820,000 square feet capable of producing 102,000 kg of organic cannabis. The first phase of this expansion is underway and construction is expected to be completed by the end of 2018. Quebec's first phase will consist of 220,000 square feet capable of producing 22,000 kg of cannabis. Two additional expansion phases will add 250,000 square feet (26,000 kg of cannabis) and 350,000 square feet (54,000 kg of cannabis). Power costs remain exceptionally low for both facilities with access to all other needed utilities available and close by.

TGOD also plans to gain a share of the burgeoning cannabis oils market which by Q1 2017 accounted for 49 percent of all cannabis sold in Canada under the ACMPR, up from only 27% in Q2 2016. TGOD has ordered a purpose-built extraction laboratory with an estimated commission in Q4 of 2017. This is a commercial-scale CO2 extraction unit capable of processing up to 12,000 kg of raw material per year and producing approximately $170 million worth of organic cannabis oils. Raw cannabis oil provides a significant downstream manufacturing opportunity into several potential recreational market verticals including edibles, beverages, topicals and concentrates.

Data from the Canadian ACMPR Market Trends report indicates a rising number of consumers will continue to seek out healthier, less conspicuous ways to consume cannabis, ensuring sales of organic cannabis oil products remain brisk. Organic cannabis products demand a significant premium compared to non-organic products and the demand keeps growing.

Plans to take the company public are underway with an initial public offering (IPO) slated for January 2018. In November, the company raised $13 million in equity financing and in March closed a $27 million non-brokered private placement. Another $20 million is currently being raised before the IPO in January, which will be utilized for expansion plans.

TGOD is uniquely positioned between the medical and recreational cannabis industry since Canada is scheduled to legalize cannabis for all adults in mid-2018. As of August 2017, TGOD has 2,400 shareholders. Established in 2012, TGOD's motto, "Making Life Better," can be seen in its strategic partnerships, top quality management team, and dedication to organic farming and principles.

Therma Bright, Inc. (TSX.V: THRM) (OTC: THRBF)

chart

Therma Bright, Inc. (TSX.V: THRM) (OTC: THRBF) is a medical device technology provider focused on addressing dermatological needs in the multi-billion-dollar cosmeceutical industry. The company's effective, non-invasive and pain-free skin care is based on proprietary technology which has received Class II medical device status from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Therma Bright's portfolio includes products, devices and treatments that have both cosmetic and medicinal or therapeutic benefits, such as for relief of pain, itch and inflammation resulting from more than 20,000 types of insect and marine life bites and stings, including bees, wasps, hornets, mosquitos, black flies and jellyfish.

The Company's current focus is to market its products online through various social media networks, and to eventually re-establish relationships with major North American and Global retailers.

Products

The company currently has two products on the market and another in the research and development phase:

InterceptCS™ is a thermal therapy device for the treatment and prevention of cold sores caused by the herpes simplex Type 1 virus*. Symptoms typically include sores around the mouth and lips which InterceptCS™ treats by application of controlled topical heat with no risk of burning the skin. When used at the first sign of an oncoming cold sore application of InterceptCS™ can prevent symptoms from developing. Infrared energy and light from the device penetrate the skin killing cells infected with the virus.

InterceptCS™ is available without prescription and comprises a battery powered ergonomic hand-held unit and a disposable single-use treatment activator. Therma Bright has completed prototyping of multi-use activators for InterceptCS™. The company plans to bring to market 5, 10 or 20 multi-use activations at prices that will offer customers greater value than the current single-use activator.

The other Therma Bright product currently under development is TherOZap™, a next generation thermal therapy device powered by the company's core technology, which is approved by the FDA as a Class II medical device for the relief of the symptoms of insect bites. Therma Bright is testing a new easier-to-use prototype of the device for effectiveness against Zika virus and other diseases carried by mosquitos. Once the technology proves effective, Therma Bright intends to seek regulatory approvals and extend the prototype enhancements to a new commercial version of TherOZap™.

Cannabis

Therma Bright is also conducting research and development on a unique thermal therapy device that would incorporate medical grade cannabis or cannabidiol ("CDB") sourced from hemp as a cream or gel to provide relief of back, knee and other joint pain. In preparation, the company has incorporated a wholly owned subsidiary to hold any technology for use or application of cannabis. Once approvals are secured, the company plans to sell the device through licensed cannabis producers or retailers across Canada and in international markets where use of cannabis has been legalized. The company has initiated trademark and patent protection for its thermal therapy technology incorporating medical cannabis. Therma Bright has indicated it will seek an acquisition to help further development of this product.

Market Opportunity

A report by market intelligence firm Mordor Intelligence put the global cosmeceuticals market at a value of nearly US$47 billion in 2017 and projects it to be worth more than $80 billion by 2023, growing at a rate of almost 9.5 percent annually. Medical research estimates that somewhere between 20 percent and 40 percent of the population suffer occasional cold sore outbreaks. In Canada those figures would mean five to 10 million people, and in the U.S. some 40 million to 80 million, with recurring cold sores, representing a substantial potential market for Therma Bright.

Management

Rob Fia serves as Therma Bright chairman and CEO. Fia has extensive contacts in the investment community and the financial sector as well as knowledge of various Canadian stock exchange listing processes and requirements. His 18 years in the investment business has included equity research and advising promising early stage companies on corporate finance. Therma Bright CFO Victor Hugo is a senior financial analyst at Marrelli Support Services Inc., for which he provides CFO, accounting, regulatory compliance, and management advisory services to companies listed on the TSX, TSX Venture Exchange and other Canadian and US exchanges.

**Based on double blind placebo study, the InterceptCS™ is approved by Health Canada for the claim "For prevention of cold sores when used within 3 hours of the onset of the prodrome." The InterceptCS™ is not approved by the United States FDA or any claim of clinical indication, clinical efficacy, and/or cure or prevention of disease.

TransCanna Holdings Inc. (CSE: TCAN) TCAN)

chart

TransCanna Holdings Inc. (CSE: TCAN) TCAN) through its subsidiaries specializes in assisting clients who are cannabis farmers and manufacturers get recognized by end consumers who in turn purchase their products. TransCanna offers or will be offering services to support almost every aspect of the cannabis-related eco-system; from branding and design, to transportation and distribution, to marketing and sales.

California's legalized adult-use recreational marijuana market opened for business January 1, 2018. The state's Bureau of Cannabis Control is responsible for regulating all commercial activities in the state including cultivation, distribution and transportation. Moving cannabis products in the California marketplace is extremely challenging due to municipal and state laws and regulations, which can differ among cities and counties. Since cannabis remains illegal under federal law, Department of Transportation regulated companies are barred from participating in the market, which means companies looking to excel in the sector must hold a state-issued distributor license from the Bureau of Cannabis Control.

TransCanna has already entered into an Intellectual Property Rights and Royalty Agreement for the Track & Trace software platform required by the state of California. TCM Distribution, the operating company managed by TransCanna, has received a transportation and distribution permit from the city of Adelanto and a temporary transportation and distribution permit from the state of California. TransCanna has also executed a land lease to build a 10,000-square-foot transportation and distribution facility in Adelanto.

TransCanna is strategically creating a distribution network throughout California that places its facilities no further than a three-hour drive from most any client. The company is in the process of leasing or purchasing properly licensed and permitted warehouses strategically located throughout California along with new secure trucks, sprinter vans and/or armored vehicles.

TransCanna plans to create its own portfolio of branded products for the cannabis and hemp sectors. The company's management team intends to translate the skills, knowledge and experience gained from a combined 60 years of branding and marketing experience in the music, professional sports and alcohol industries into TransCanna and the cannabis industry.

As part of the "TransCanna Way," the company intends to manage most aspects of the supply chain from upper end procurement, branding, transportation and distribution, to marketing and sales.

Leading TransCanna as its CEO and chairman is James Pakulis, who has three decades of experience working with public and private entrepreneurial companies in a variety of emerging and high-growth sectors. He is formerly the president and a director of Lifestyle Delivery Systems Inc. (CSE: LDS) (OTCQB: LDSYF), a vertically integrated cannabis-related entity operating in California. Pakulis was chairman and CEO of General Cannabis Inc. which from 2010 to 2012 owned WeedMaps. Pakulis oversaw the company's growth from zero to over $16 million in annual revenue in less than 24 months.

The company's strategic advisors include individuals with extensive experience in branding, marketing, sales, distribution, production and supply chain management.

For additional information, call: (604) 609-6199

VIVO Cannabis Inc. (TSX.V: VIVO) (OTC: VVCIF)

chart

VIVO Cannabis Inc. (TSX.V: VIVO) (OTC: VVCIF) is a globally licensed, cost efficient producer of premium quality, organic, standardized medicinal cannabis. One of the earliest licensed medical marijuana producers under Canada's federally-controlled Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations (ACMPR), VIVO has five years of operating experience in the burgeoning medical marijuana space through its flagship operation, ABcann Medicinals, Inc. The company recently received its Health Canada license to produce medical cannabis oils and is working toward production of saleable, extracted, finished products that will lead to a final inspection allowing sales of its oils.

"Receipt of the license to produce cannabis oils is a major milestone in our pursuit to provide our medical cannabis patients with additional product formats that can be precisely dosed. The expansion and innovation of our product lines are a top priority for the Company as we continue to serve the needs of our customers, and we anticipate strong demand for our cannabis oil products," VIVO CEO Barry Fishman said.

VIVO owns and operates a fully functioning 14,500 square foot facility in Napanee, Ontario, which is being doubled in size to produce 1,400 kg of cannabis per year. The company's expansion plans include adding a seasonal greenhouse and a hybrid, multipurpose facility, capable of producing 31,000 kg of cannabis per year between the two facilities, to be constructed on 65 acres it already owns near the Napanee facility. This additional location is properly zoned with existing infrastructure in place for an eventual 1.2 million square feet of production space.

VIVO has built a reputation over the years for its best-in-class standardized approach to growing cannabis that includes the absence of pesticides and a computer monitored growing technique that provides a consistent, pharmaceutical-grade with high yields. The company's custom, scalable growing chambers with proprietary lighting can be replicated anywhere in the world, leading to lower production costs. This technique has helped it record a customer retention rate of 94.7 percent alongside 30 percent month-over-month customer growth. When combined with VIVO's current yield rate, which it has measured at roughly 100 percent greater than the industry average, the company has constructed a strong foundation upon which to build a sizable presence in the global cannabis industry.

This global growth potential is illustrated by VIVO's partnership with Israel's Syqe Medical, producer of the world's first selective-dose pharmaceutical grade medicinal plant inhaler. After visiting VIVO's production facility, Perry Davidson, founder of Syqe Medical, noted that the company's production technologies put it "in a class with the best in the world" in its ability to produce standardized pharmaceutical grade cannabis.

VIVO's recent acquisition of Harvest Medicine Inc. represents further progress toward the company's goal of becoming a vertically integrated medical cannabis company. Harvest Medicine is one of the fastest growing medical cannabis clinics in Canada – adding over 1,200 new patients monthly from a single location – with an aggressive expansion plan and a patient-focused approach that perfectly aligns with VIVO's philosophy of quality and innovation.

VIVO's seasoned management team, board of directors and advisory board features well over a century of combined industry experience. Fishman, who has over 20 years of experience as a business leader, previously served as CEO of both Teva Canada and Taro Canada, as vice president of marketing at Eli Lilly Canada, and as past chair of the Canadian Generic Manufacturers Association. He most recently served as CEO of international specialty pharmaceutical company Merus Labs.

Notably, VIVO also has access to the 'Father of Cannabis Research', Raphael Mechoulam, PhD, through its board of advisors. An organic chemist and professor of medicinal chemistry at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Mechoulam was the first scientist to isolate both cannabidiol (CBD) and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). He has received more than 25 prestigious academic awards, including the Rothschild Prize in Chemical Sciences and Physical Sciences in 2012.

With more than 65 acres of growth capacity, a healthy cash balance to fund upcoming construction efforts, steady sales growth, industry-leading yield rates and an established operations team in place, VIVO is well positioned to compete in the rapidly expanding Canadian cannabis industry and beyond.

Youngevity International, Inc. (NASDAQ: YGYI)

chart

Youngevity International, Inc. (NASDAQ: YGYI) is a leading omni-direct lifestyle company offering a hybrid of the direct selling business model that includes e-commerce and the power of social selling. Among the Top 100 Global Direct Selling Companies, Youngevity offers products from the six top selling retail categories: health/nutrition, home/family, food/beverage (including coffee), spa/beauty, apparel/jewelry, and a range of innovative services. Created through the 2011 merger of Youngevity Essential Life Sciences with Javalution® Coffee Company, today's Youngevity International Inc. is a virtual worldwide Main Street of products and services under one corporate entity that supports a healthy and empowered lifestyle.

Youngevity International is dedicated to improving lifestyles through the universal desires of vibrant health and flourishing economics. Catering to health-conscious consumers, Youngevity believes that combining the best of the direct selling industry with the fundamentals and capabilities of a traditional business model will maximize shareholder value. The company's Nutritional, Lifestyle and Telecommunications products and services are distributed through a global network of Preferred Customers and Distributors.

Youngevity's wholly owned CLR Roasters LLC business line offers quality branded and private label coffee to retail stores, office coffee services, hospitality, food services, distributors, convenience, petrol stores and vending businesses. Today, CLR Roasters is the largest coffee provider for cruise lines in North America and the second largest roaster in the state of Florida. Producing a consistent premium product with superior taste, CLR Roasters has earned numerous certifications that demonstrate the company's commitment to the craft of providing the highest quality coffee products using the best practice standards available.

Youngevity, operating in the direct-selling channel, is rapidly expanding its product and distributor base through acquisitions and mergers under an innovative concept called "the Network Cloud" that provides other direct selling companies with a home base. The company's YoungevityGO2 mobile distributor app, a new technology-driven web platform supporting expansion of global e-commerce and social selling platforms, is available on Google Play and the App Store. In addition to the Network Cloud concept, Youngevity International owns CLR Coffee Roasters which operates a traditional coffee roasting business offering a JavaFit® gourmet product line that vertically integrates with Youngevity and its growing network of direct marketers.

Youngevity International offers more than 1,000 high quality, technologically advanced products under the following categories:

  • Health and Nutrition
  • Home and Family
  • Food and Beverage
  • Spa and Beauty
  • Fashion
  • Essential Oils
  • Photo and scrapbooking
  • Services for Home and Business

Youngevity International Inc. has compiled a best-in-class management team with a strong track record of success in private and public companies. Steve Wallach, CEO, has nearly two decades of sales and network marketing experience and has successfully guided Youngevity International Inc. to become an international, publicly-traded direct marketing company positioned for worldwide growth. Dave Briskie, president and CFO, has shepherded the company's development into a fully vertical coffee roasting and distribution company that owns the direct marketing brand JavaFit® and the retail brand, Café La Rica.

Youngevity has also attracted a stunning group of Brand Evangelists who endorse its products. Among these are actress, author and well-known health and wellness activist Marilu Henner; former NBA basket player, Mike "Stinger" Glenn; former NFL wide receiver Drew Pearson; "Greatest Natural Bodybuilder in the World" Gene Nelson; and WNBA champion, Olympic gold medalist Delisha Jones.

Zenergy Brands, Inc. (ZNGY)

chart

Zenergy Brands, Inc. (ZNGY) is a leading next-generation energy and technology company operating in the emerging smart energy, conservation, and utility industries. The company's vision is to converge smart controls (building automation) with energy conservation and retail energy to deliver comprehensive smart-energy service to customers. Headquartered in Texas, Zenergy provides an entire suite of conservation-based products and services that enable clients to achieve sustainability goals, reduce carbon emissions, and improve their bottom line.

The company's cutting-edge Zero Cost Program™ reduces utility consumption by 20 to 60 percent by offering energy conservation, smart controls, and efficiency-based products and services to commercial, industrial, and municipal end-use customers. This financing mechanism allows customers to reduce water, natural gas, and electricity consumption by implementing proven conservation technologies at no out-of-pocket cost. The Zero Cost Program enriches businesses by immediately reducing energy consumption using smart controls, building automation, LED lighting solutions, refrigeration optimization, efficient water systems, EC motor controls, demand-side management, and load factor correction.

A unique Managed Energy Services Agreement ("MESA") permits Zenergy to retain a portion of these utility savings in exchange for financing the upgraded, retrofit equipment, and installation costs until a specified and agreed upon repayment period with the client ends. After that, clients reap all the financial rewards of the technologies implemented, which Zenergy estimates should range between 25 and 45 percent of total utility costs.

On a global scale, residential and commercial buildings account for nearly 45 percent of the world's total energy consumption. Improving the energy efficiency of homes and buildings is often a more affordable way to reduce harmful gas emissions while minimizing the need for new energy production.

According to Navigant Research, global revenue for energy-efficient commercial building retrofits alone is expected to grow from $71.4 billion in 2016 to $100.8 billion in 2025, which is where Zenergy will focus its efforts in 2019 and beyond. At the same time, the energy-efficient devices market is expected to reach a market size of $908 billion by 2022. Increasing demands for reduction in energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions along with concerns over climate change are contributing factors driving the market's overall growth.