Item 1A. Risk Factors.
Risks Related to the Cannabis Business
Our cannabis business is dependent upon regulatory approvals and licenses, ongoing compliance and reporting obligations, and timely renewals.
Our ability to cultivate, process, and sell medical and adult-use cannabis, cannabis-derived extracts and derivative cannabis products in Canada is dependent on maintaining the licenses issued to our operating subsidiaries by Health Canada under the Cannabis Regulations, or CR. These licenses allow us to produce cannabis in bulk and finished forms and to sell and distribute such cannabis in Canada. They also allow us to export medical cannabis in bulk and finished form to and from specified jurisdictions around the world, subject to obtaining, for each specific shipment, an export approval from Health Canada and an import approval (or no objection notice) from the applicable regulatory authority in the country to or from which the export or import is being made. These CR licenses and other approvals are valid for fixed periods and we must obtain renewals on a periodic basis. There can be no assurance that existing licenses will be renewed or new licenses obtained on the same or similar terms as our existing licenses, nor can there be any assurance that Health Canada will continue to issue import or export permits on the same terms or on the same timeline, or that other countries will allow, or continue to allow, imports or exports.
We are also required to obtain and maintain certain permits, licenses or other approvals from regulatory agencies in countries and markets outside of Canada in which we operate or to which we export our product, including, in the case of certain countries, the ability to demonstrate compliance with EU-GMP standards. We have received certification of compliance with EU-GMP standards for cultivation and production at Tilray Portugal and Aphria RX in Germany. These GMP certified facilities are subject to extensive ongoing compliance reviews to ensure that we continue to maintain compliance with current GMP standards. There can be no assurance that we will be able to continue to comply with these standards. Moreover, future governmental actions in countries where we operate, or import/export products, may limit, delay or altogether restrict the import and/or export of cannabis products.
Any future cannabis production facilities that we operate in Canada or elsewhere will also be subject to separate licensing requirements under the CR or applicable local requirements. Although we believe that we will meet the requirements for future renewals of our existing licenses and obtain requisite licenses for future facilities, there can be no assurance that existing licenses will be renewed or new licenses obtained on the same or similar terms as our existing licenses, nor can there be any assurance that Health Canada will continue to issue import or export permits on the same terms or on the same timeline, or that other countries will allow, or continue to allow, imports or exports. An agency’s denial of or delay in issuing or renewing a permit, license or other approval, or revocation or substantial modification of an existing permit, license or approval, could restrict or prevent us from continuing the affected operations, or limit the export and/or import of our cannabis products. In addition, the export and import of cannabis is subject to United Nations treaties establishing country-by-country national estimates and our export and import permits are subject to these estimates which could limit the amount of cannabis we can export to any particular country.
Further, our facilities are subject to ongoing inspections by the governing regulatory authority to monitor our compliance with their licensing requirements. Our existing licenses and any new licenses that we may obtain in the future in Canada or other jurisdictions may be revoked or restricted in the event that we are found not to be in compliance. Should we fail to comply with the applicable regulatory requirements or with conditions set out under our licenses, should our licenses not be renewed when required, be renewed on different terms, or be revoked, we may not be able to continue producing or distributing cannabis in Canada or other jurisdictions or to import or export cannabis products. In addition, we may be subject to enforcement proceedings resulting from a failure to comply with applicable regulatory requirements in Canada or other jurisdictions, which could result in damage awards, the suspension, withdrawal or non-renewal of our existing approvals or denial of future approvals, recall of products, the imposition of future operating restrictions on our business or operations or the imposition of fines or other penalties.
Government regulation of the cannabis industry is evolving, including recent regulatory developments in the United States to reschedule cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act or revise the current federal framework under the 2018 Farm Bill for hemp-derived cannabis, including Delta-9, and any unfavorable changes or lack of commercial legalization could impact our ability to carry on our business as currently conducted and the potential expansion of our business.
We operate in a highly regulated and rapidly evolving industry. The successful execution of our business objectives is contingent upon compliance with all applicable laws and regulatory requirements in Canada (including the Cannabis Act and CR), Europe and other jurisdictions, and obtaining all required regulatory approvals for the production, sale, import and export of our cannabis products. The laws, regulations and guidelines generally applicable to the cannabis industry domestically and internationally may change in ways currently unforeseen. Any amendment to or replacement of existing laws, regulations, guidelines or policies may cause adverse effects to our operations, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
The federal legislative framework pertaining to the Canadian cannabis market is still very new. In addition, the governments of every Canadian province and territory have implemented different regulatory regimes for the distribution and sale of cannabis for adult-use purposes within those jurisdictions. There is no guarantee that the Canadian legislative framework regulating the cultivation, processing, distribution and sale of cannabis will not be amended or replaced or the current legislation will create the growth opportunities we currently anticipate.
In the United States, despite cannabis having been legalized at the state level for medical use in many states and for adult-use in a number of states, cannabis meeting the statutory definition of “marijuana” continues to be categorized as a Schedule I controlled substance under the federal Controlled Substances Act, or the CSA, and subject to the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act, or the CSIEA. Hemp and marijuana both originate from the Cannabis sativa plant and CBD is a constituent of both. There have been regulatory efforts in the United States to broaden medical access to cannabis and reschedule cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act. “Marihuana” or “marijuana” is defined in the CSA as a Schedule I controlled substance whereas “hemp” is essentially any parts of the Cannabis sativa plant that has not been determined to be marijuana. Pursuant to the 2018 Farm Bill, “hemp,” or cannabis and cannabis derivatives containing no more than 0.3% of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, is as of the date of this Form 10-K excluded from the statutory definition of “marijuana” and, as such, is no longer a Schedule I controlled substance under the CSA. As a result, our activity in the United States is limited to (a) certain corporate and administrative services, including accounting, legal and creative services, (b) supply of study drug for clinical trials under DEA and FDA authorization, and (c) participation in the market for hemp and hemp-derived products containing CBD in compliance with the 2018 Farm Bill.
There can be no assurance that the United States will implement federal legalization of cannabis. With respect to CBD and hemp, while the 2018 Farm Bill exempts hemp and hemp derived products from the CSA, the commercialization of hemp products in the United States is subject to various laws, including the 2018 Farm Bill, the FD&C Act, the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act, or (the “DSHEA”), applicable state and/or local laws, and FDA regulations. See also Risk Factor “ United States regulations relating to hemp-derived CBD products are new and rapidly evolving, and changes may not develop in the timeframe or manner most favorable to our business objectives ” .
Our ability to expand internationally is also contingent, in part, upon compliance with applicable regulatory requirements enacted by governmental authorities and obtaining all requisite regulatory approvals. We cannot predict the impact of the compliance regime that governmental authorities may implement to regulate the adult-use or medical cannabis industry. Similarly, we cannot predict how long it will take to secure all appropriate regulatory approvals for our products, or the extent of testing and documentation that may be required by governmental authorities. The impact of the various compliance regimes, any delays in obtaining, or failure to obtain regulatory approvals may significantly delay or impact the development of markets, products and sales initiatives and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects. As the commercial cannabis industry develops in Canada and other jurisdictions, we anticipate that regulations governing cannabis in Canada and globally will continue to evolve. Further, Health Canada or the regulatory authorities in other countries in which we operate or to which we export our cannabis products may change their administration or application of the applicable regulations or their compliance or enforcement procedures at any time. There is no assurance that we will be able to comply or continue to comply with applicable regulations, which could impact our ability to continue to carry on business as currently conducted and the potential expansion of our business.
We currently incur and will continue to incur ongoing costs and obligations related to regulatory compliance. A failure on our part to comply with regulations may result in additional costs for corrective measures, penalties or restrictions on our business or operations. In addition, changes in regulations, more vigorous enforcement thereof or other unanticipated events could require extensive changes to our operations, increased compliance costs or give rise to material liabilities, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
Competition from the illicit cannabis market could impact our ability to succeed.
We face competition from illegal market operators that are unlicensed and unregulated including illegal dispensaries and illicit market suppliers selling cannabis and cannabis-based products. As these illegal market participants do not comply with the regulations governing the cannabis industry, their operations may have significantly lower costs. The perpetuation of the illegal market for cannabis may have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, as well as the perception of cannabis use. Furthermore, given the restrictions on regulated cannabis retail, it is possible that legal cannabis consumers revert to the illicit market as a matter of convenience.
Our production and processing facilities are integral to our business and adverse changes or developments affecting our facilities may have an adverse impact on our business.
Our cultivation and processing facilities are integral to our business and the licenses issued by applicable regulatory authorities are specific to each of these facilities. Adverse changes or developments affecting these facilities, including, but not limited to, disease or infestation of our crops, a fire, an explosion, a power failure, a natural disaster, an epidemic, pandemic or other public health crisis, or a material failure of our security infrastructure, could reduce or require us to entirely suspend operations at the affected facilities.
A significant failure of our site security measures and other facility requirements, including failure to comply with applicable regulatory requirements, could have an impact on our ability to continue operating under our facility licenses and our prospects of renewing our licenses, and could also result in a suspension or revocation of these licenses.
We face intense competition, and anticipate competition will increase, which could hurt our business.
We face, and we expect to continue to face, intense competition from other Licensed Producers and other potential competitors, some of which have longer operating histories and more financial resources than we have. In addition, we anticipate that the cannabis industry will continue to undergo consolidation, creating larger companies with financial resources, manufacturing and marketing capabilities and product offerings that may be greater than ours. As a result of this competition, we may be unable to maintain our operations or develop them as currently proposed, on terms we consider acceptable, or at all.
Health Canada has issued approximately a thousand licenses for Licensed Producers. The number of licenses granted and the number of Licensed Producers ultimately authorized by Health Canada could have an adverse impact on our ability to compete for market share in Canada. We expect to face additional competition from new market entrants and may experience downward price pressure on our cannabis products as new entrants increase production. If the number of users of cannabis in Canada increases, the demand for products will increase and the Company expects that competition will become more intense, as current and future competitors begin to offer an increasing number of diversified products and pricing strategies.
Our commercial opportunity in the medical and adult-use markets could also be impacted if our competitors produce and commercialize products that, among other things, are safer, more effective, more convenient or less expensive than the products that we may produce, have greater sales, marketing and distribution support than our products, enjoy enhanced timing of market introduction and perceived effectiveness advantages over our products and receive more favorable publicity than our products. To remain competitive, we intend to continue to invest in research and development, marketing and sales and client support. We may not have sufficient resources to maintain research and development, marketing and sales and client support efforts on a competitive basis.
In addition to the foregoing, the legal landscape for medical and adult-use cannabis is changing internationally. We maintain operations outside of Canada, which may be affected as other countries develop, adopt and change their laws related to medical and adult-use cannabis. Increased international competition, including competition from suppliers in other countries who may be able to produce at lower cost, and limitations placed on us by the countries in which we participate or other regulations, might lower the demand for our cannabis products on a global scale.
The cannabis industry and market are relatively new and evolving, which could impact our ability to succeed in this industry and market.
We are operating our business in a relatively new industry and market that is expanding globally, and our success depends on our ability to attract and retain consumers and patients. There are many factors which could impact our ability to attract and retain consumers and patients, including but not limited to brand awareness, our ability to continually produce desirable and effective cannabis products and the ability to bring new consumers and patients into the category. The failure to acquire and retain consumers and patients could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
To remain competitive, we will continue to innovate new products, build brand awareness and make significant investments in our business strategy and production capacity. These investments include introducing new products into the markets in which we operate, adopting quality assurance protocols and procedures, building our international presence and undertaking research and development. These activities may not promote our products as effectively as intended, or at all, and we expect that our competitors will undertake similar investments to compete with us for market share. Competitive conditions, consumer preferences, regulatory conditions, patient requirements, prescribing practices, and spending patterns in this industry and market are relatively unknown and may have unique characteristics that differ from other existing industries and markets and that cause our efforts to further our business to be unsuccessful or to have undesired consequences. As a result, we may not be successful in our efforts to attract and retain customers or to develop new cannabis products and produce and distribute these products in time to be effectively commercialized, or these activities may require significantly more resources than we currently anticipate in order to be successful.
Regulations constrain our ability to market and distribute our products in Canada.
In Canada, there are significant regulatory restrictions on the marketing, branding, product formats, product composition, packaging, and distribution of adult-use cannabis products. For instance, the CR includes a requirement for health warnings on product packaging, the limited ability to use logos and branding (only one brand name and one brand element per package), restrictions on packaging itself, and restrictions on types and avenues of marketing. Cannabis 2.0 regulations, which govern the production and sale of new classes or forms of cannabis products (including vapes and edibles), impose considerable restrictions on product composition, labeling, and packaging in addition to being subject to similar marketing restrictions as existing form factors.
Further, each province and territory of Canada has the ability to separately regulate the distribution of cannabis within such province or territory (including the legal age), and the rules and regulations adopted vary significantly. Additional marketing and product composition restrictions have been imposed by some provinces and territories. Such federal and provincial restrictions may impair our ability to differentiate our products and develop our adult-use brands. Some provinces and territories also impose significant restrictions on our ability to merchandise products; for example, some provinces impose restrictions on investment in retailers or distributors as well as in our ability to negotiate for preferential retail space or in-store marketing. If we are unable to effectively market our products and compete for market share, our sales and results of operations may be adversely affected.
Research regarding the health effects of cannabis is in relatively early stages and subject to further study which could impact demand for cannabis products.
Research and clinical trials on the potential benefits and the short-term and long-term effects of cannabis use on human health remains in relatively early stages and there is limited standardization. As such, there are inherent risks associated with using cannabis and cannabis derivative products. Moreover, future research and clinical trials may draw opposing conclusions to statements contained in articles, reports and studies we relied on or could reach different or negative conclusions regarding the benefits, viability, safety, efficacy, dosing or other facts and perceptions related to cannabis, which could adversely affect social acceptance of cannabis and the demand for our products.
United States regulations relating to hemp-derived CBD products, Delta-9 products, and medical cannabis products are new and rapidly evolving, and changes may not develop in the timeframe or manner most favorable to our business objectives.
Our participation in the market for hemp-derived CBD products, Delta-9 products, and medical cannabis products in the United States and elsewhere may require us to employ novel approaches to existing regulatory pathways. Although the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill legalized the cultivation of hemp in the United States to produce products containing CBD and other non-THC cannabinoids, it remains unclear whether and when the FDA will propose or implement new or additional regulations. While, to date, there are no laws or regulations enforced by the FDA which specifically address the manufacturing, packaging, labeling, distribution, or sale of hemp or hemp-derived CBD products and Delta-9 products. The FDA has issued no formal regulations addressing such matters, the FDA has issued various guidance documents and other statements reflecting its non-binding opinion on the regulation of such products.
The hemp plant and the cannabis/marijuana plant are both part of the same cannabis sativa genus/species of plant, except that hemp, by definition, has less than 0.3% THC content, but the same plant with a higher THC content is cannabis/marijuana, which is legal under certain state laws, but which is not legal under United States federal law. The similarities between these two can cause confusion, and our activities with legal hemp in the United States may be incorrectly perceived as us being involved in federally illegal cannabis. The FDA has stated in guidance and other public statements that it is prohibited to sell a food, beverage or dietary supplement to which THC or CBD has been added. While the FDA does not have a formal policy of enforcement discretion with respect to any products with added CBD, the agency has stated that its primary focus for enforcement centers on products that put the health and safety of consumers at risk, such as those claiming to prevent, diagnose, mitigate, treat, or cure diseases in the absence of requisite approvals. While the agency’s enforcement to date has therefore focused on products containing CBD and that make drug-like claims, there is the risk that the FDA could expand its enforcement activities and require us to alter our marketing for our hemp-derived CBD products and Delta-9 products or cease distributing them altogether. The FDA could also issue new regulations that prohibit or limit the sale of hemp-derived CBD products and Delta-9 products. Such regulatory actions and associated compliance costs may hinder our ability to successfully compete in the market for such products.
In addition, such products may be subject to regulation at the state or local levels. State and local authorities have issued their own restrictions on the cultivation or sale of hemp or hemp-derived CBD and Delta-9 products. This includes laws that ban the cultivation or possession of hemp or any other plant of the cannabis genus and derivatives thereof, such as CBD. State regulators may take enforcement action against food and dietary supplement products that contain CBD, or enact new laws or regulations that prohibit or limit the sale of such products.
The regulation of hemp and CBD in the United States has been constantly evolving, with changes in federal and state laws and regulation occurring on a frequent basis. Violations of applicable FDA and other laws could result in warning letters, significant fines, penalties, administrative sanctions, injunctions, convictions or settlements arising from civil proceedings. Unforeseen regulatory obstacles or compliance costs may hinder our ability to successfully compete in the market for such products.
Risks related to the Beverage Business
Changes in consumer preferences or public attitudes about alcohol could decrease demand for our beverage products.
If general consumer trends lead to a decrease in the demand for our beers and other alcohol products or Breckenridge’s whiskey products, including craft beer, our sales and results of operations in the beverage segment may be adversely affected. There is no assurance that the craft brewing segment will experience growth in future periods. If the markets for wine, spirits or flavored alcohol beverages continue to grow, this could draw consumers away from the industry in general and our beverage products specifically.
Further, the beverage industry is subject to public concern and political attention over alcohol-related social problems, including drunk driving, underage drinking and health consequences from the misuse of alcohol. In reaction to these concerns, steps may be taken to restrict advertising, to impose additional cautionary labeling or packaging requirements, or to increase excise or other taxes on beverage products. Any such developments may have an adverse impact on the financial condition, operating results and cash flows for our beverage businesses.
Developments affecting production sites, including at our breweries or our distillery in Breckenridge, could negatively impact financial results for our beverage business segment.
Adverse changes or developments affecting our beer production sites, or our distillery in Breckenridge, including, fire, power failure, natural disaster, public health crisis, or a material failure of our security infrastructure, could reduce or require us to entirely suspend operations. Additionally, due to many factors, including seasonality and production schedules of our various products and packaging, actual production capacity may fluctuate throughout the year and may not reach full working capacity. If we experience contraction in our sales and production volumes, the excess capacity and unabsorbed overhead may have an adverse effect on gross margins, operating cash flows and overall financial performance of our beverage businesses.
Sweetwater, Breckenridge, Montauk and our other recently-acquired craft beverage brands portfolio each face substantial competition in the beer industry and the broader market for alcoholic beverage products, which could impact our business and financial results.
The market for alcoholic beverage products within the United States is highly competitive due to the increasing number of domestic and international beverage companies with similar pricing and target drinkers, the introduction and expansion of hard seltzers and ready-to-drink beverages, gains in market share achieved by domestic specialty beers and imported beers, and the acquisition of craft brewers and smaller producers by larger companies. We anticipate competition among domestic craft brewers and distillers will also remain strong as existing facilities build more capacity, expand geographically and add more products, flavors and styles. The continued growth in the sales of hard seltzers, craft-brewed domestic beers and imported beers is expected to increase competition in the market for alcoholic beverages within the United States and, as a result, prices and market share of Breckenridge’s and our other craft brands' products may fluctuate and possibly decline.
The alcohol industry has seen continued consolidation among producers in order to take advantage of cost savings opportunities for supplies, distribution and operations. Due to the increased leverage that these combined operations have in distribution and sales and marketing expenses, the costs to Breckenridge and our other craft brands of competing could increase. The potential also exists for these large competitors to increase their influence with their distributors, making it difficult for smaller producers to maintain their market presence or enter new markets. The increase in the number and availability of competing products and brands, the costs to compete and potential decrease in distribution support and opportunities may adversely affect our business and financial results.
Sweetwater, Breckenridge, Montauk and our other recently-acquired craft beverage brands portfolio are each dependent on distributors to deliver sustained growth and distribute products.
In the United States, each of SweetWater, Breckenridge, Montauk and our other craft brands sells its beverages to independent distributors for distribution to retailers and, ultimately, to consumers. No assurance can be given that SweetWater, Breckenridge, Montauk and our other craft brands will be able to maintain their current distribution networks or secure additional distributors on favorable terms. If existing distribution agreements are terminated, it may not be possible to enter into new distribution agreements on substantially similar terms or to timely put in place replacement distribution agreements, which may result in an impairment to distribution and an increase in the costs of distribution.
Risks Related to Ongoing Litigation Claims
We are subject to litigation, arbitration and demands, which could result in significant liability and costs, and impact our resources and reputation.
Tilray has previously been named as a defendant in multiple class-action cases, including securities litigation claims against its predecessor (Aphria) in the U.S. that remain ongoing. In addition, legal proceedings covering a wide range of matters are pending or threatened in various U.S. and foreign jurisdictions against the Company. The types of claims that may be raised in these proceedings include product liability, unfair trade practices, antitrust, tax, contraband shipments, patent infringement, employment matters, claims for contribution and claims of competitors, shareholders or distributors. Litigation is subject to uncertainty and it is possible that there could be adverse developments in pending or future cases.
We are also subject to other litigation and demands relating to business decisions, regulatory and industry changes, supply relationships, and our business acquisition matters and related activities. Litigation may include claims for substantial compensatory or punitive damages or claims for indeterminate amounts of damages. Tilray and its various subsidiaries are also involved from time to time in other reviews, investigations and proceedings (both formal and informal) by governmental and self-regulatory agencies regarding our business. These matters could result in adverse judgments, settlements, fines, penalties, injunctions or other relief.
We have incurred and may continue to incur substantial costs and expenses relating directly to these actions, and substantial losses if these actions are ultimately litigated. Responding to such actions could divert management’s attention away from our business operations and result in substantial costs and potential losses. For more information on our pending legal proceedings, see “ Part I, Item 3. Legal Proceedings ”.
General Business Risks and Risks Related to Our Financial Condition and Operations
The Company ’ s business may be materially adversely affected by the imposition of duties and tariffs and other trade barriers and retaliatory countermeasures implemented by the U.S. and other governments.
Recently there have been significant changes to U.S. trade policies, sanctions, legislation, treaties and tariffs, including, but not limited to, trade policies and tariffs affecting products from outside of the U.S. For example, in early 2025, the current U.S. presidential administration announced significant new tariffs on foreign imports into the U.S., specifically from Mexico and Canada, and has proposed additional new tariffs that may be implemented in the future. The extent and duration of increased tariffs and the resulting impact on general economic conditions and on our business are uncertain and depend on various factors, such as negotiations between the U.S. and affected countries, the responses of other countries or regions, exemptions or exclusions that may be granted, availability and cost of alternative sources of supply, and demand for our products in affected markets. Any new or additional tariffs on goods imported to the U.S. from Mexico, Canada, or other countries, or products imported into the European Union or other non-U.S. markets, could also increase the cost of some of our products and reduce our margins. In response to the tariffs, the Company may seek to increase prices to its customers, which may diminish demand for its products. The imposition of additional tariffs or other trade barriers could increase our costs in certain markets and may cause our customers to find alternative sourcing or could make it more difficult for us to sell our products in some markets. Other countries where we operate or sell our products have changed, and may continue to change, their own policies on trade as well as business and foreign investment in their respective countries. Additionally, it is possible that U.S. policy changes and uncertainty about such changes could increase market volatility and currency exchange rate fluctuations. As a result of these dynamics, we cannot predict the impact to our business of any future changes to the U.S.’s or other countries’ trading relationships or the impact of new laws or regulations adopted by the U.S. or other countries.
Additional impairments of our goodwill, additional impairments of our intangible and other long-lived assets, and changes in the estimated useful lives of intangible assets could have a material adverse impact on our financial results.
Goodwill, intangible and other long-lived assets comprise a significant portion of our total assets. As of May 31, 2025 our goodwill and intangible assets totaled $752.4 million and $21.4 million, respectively. We test goodwill and indefinite lived intangible assets for impairment annually, while our other long-lived assets, including our finite-lived intangible assets, are tested for impairment when circumstances indicate that the carrying amount may not be recoverable, in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles in the U.S. (“GAAP”). A further decrease in our market capitalization or profitability, or unfavorable changes in market, economic or industry conditions could increase the risk of additional impairment. Any resulting additional impairments could have a negative impact on our stock price.
We will continue to monitor key assumptions and other factors utilized in our goodwill, intangible and other long-lived assets impairment analysis, and if business or other market conditions develop that are materially different than we currently anticipate, we will conduct an additional impairment evaluation. Any additional reductions in or impairments of the value of goodwill, intangible assets and long-lived assets will result in an additional charge against earnings, which would have a material adverse impact on our reported financial results.
We have a limited operating history and a history of net losses, and we may not achieve or maintain profitability in the future.
We began operating in 2014 and have yet to generate a profit. We intend to continue to expend funds to explore potential opportunities and complete strategic mergers and acquisitions, invest in research and development, expand our marketing and sales operations and meet the compliance requirements as a public company.
Our efforts to grow our business may be more costly than we expect and we may not be able to increase our revenue enough to offset higher operating expenses. We may incur significant losses in the future for a number of reasons, including as a result of unforeseen expenses, difficulties, complications and delays, the other risks described herein and other unknown events. The amount of future net losses will depend, in part, on the growth of our future expenses and our ability to generate revenue. If we continue to incur losses in the future, the net losses and negative cash flows incurred to date, together with any such future losses, will have an adverse effect on our stockholders’ equity and working capital. Because of the numerous risks and uncertainties associated with producing and selling cannabis and beverage products, as outlined herein, we are unable to accurately predict when, or if, we will be able to achieve profitability. Even if we achieve profitability in the future, we may not be able to sustain profitability in subsequent periods. If we are unable to achieve and sustain profitability, the market price of our common stock may significantly decrease and our ability to raise capital, expand our business or continue our operations may be impaired.
We are exposed to risks relating to the laws of various countries as a result of our international operations.
We currently conduct operations in multiple countries and plan to expand these international operations. As a result of our operations, we are exposed to various levels of political, economic, legal and other risks and uncertainties associated with operating in or exporting to these jurisdictions. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, changes in the laws, regulations and policies governing the production, sale and use of our products, political instability, instability at the United Nations level, currency controls, fluctuations in currency exchange rates and rates of inflation, labor unrest, changes in taxation laws, regulations and policies, restrictions on foreign exchange and repatriation and changing political conditions and governmental regulations relating to foreign investment and the cannabis business more generally.
Changes, if any, in the laws, regulations and policies relating to the advertising, production, sale and use of our products or in the general economic policies in these jurisdictions, or shifts in political attitude related thereto, may adversely affect the operations, or profitability of our operations, in these countries. As we explore novel business models, such as global co-branded products, cannabinoid clinics and cannabis retail, international regulations will become increasingly challenging to manage. Specifically, our operations may be affected in varying degrees by government regulations with respect to, but not limited to, restrictions on advertising, production, price controls, export controls, controls on currency remittance, increased income taxes, restrictions on foreign investment, land and water use restrictions and government policies rewarding contracts to local competitors or requiring domestic producers or vendors to purchase supplies from a particular jurisdiction. Failure to comply strictly with applicable laws, regulations and local practices could result in additional taxes, costs, civil or criminal fines or penalties or other expenses being levied on our international operations, as well as other potential adverse consequences such as the loss of necessary permits or governmental approvals.
Furthermore, there is no assurance that we will be able to timely secure the requisite import and export permits for the international distribution of our products. Countries may also impose restrictions or limitations on imports that require the use of, or confer significant advantages upon, producers within that particular country. As a result, we may be required to establish facilities in one or more countries in the EU (or elsewhere) where we wish to distribute our products in order to take advantage of the favorable legislation offered to producers in these countries.
We are required to comply concurrently with all applicable laws in each jurisdiction where we operate or to which we export our products, and any changes to such laws could adversely impact our business.
Various federal, state, provincial and local laws and regulations govern our business in the jurisdictions in which we operate or propose to operate, and in which we export or propose to export our products. Such laws and regulations include those relating to health and safety, conduct of operations and the production, management, transportation, storage and disposal of our products and of certain material used in our operations. In many cases, we must concurrently comply with complex federal, provincial, state and/or local laws in multiple jurisdictions. These laws change frequently and may be difficult to interpret and apply. Compliance with these laws and regulations requires the investment of significant financial and managerial resources, and a determination that we are not in compliance with any of these laws and regulations could harm our brand image and business. Moreover, it is impossible for us to predict the cost or effect of such laws, regulations or guidelines upon our future operations. Changes to these laws or regulations could negatively affect our competitive position within our industry and the markets in which we operate, and there is no assurance that various levels of government in the jurisdictions in which we operate will not pass legislation or regulation that adversely impacts our business.
Our strategic alliances and other third-party business relationships may not achieve the intended beneficial impact and expose us to risks.
We currently have, and may adjust the scope of, and may in the future enter into, strategic alliances with third parties that we believe will complement or augment our existing business. Our ability to complete further strategic alliances is dependent upon, and may be limited by, among other things, the availability of suitable candidates and capital. In addition, strategic alliances could present unforeseen integration obstacles or costs, may not enhance our business or profitability and may involve risks that could adversely affect us, including the investment of significant amounts of management time that may be diverted from operations in order to pursue and complete such transactions or maintain such strategic alliances. We may become dependent on our strategic partners and actions by such partners could harm our business. Future strategic alliances could result in the incurrence of debt, impairment charges, costs and contingent liabilities, and there can be no assurance that future strategic alliances will achieve, or that our existing strategic alliances will continue to achieve, the expected benefits to our business or that we will be able to consummate future strategic alliances on satisfactory terms, or at all.
We may not be able to successfully identify and execute future acquisitions, dispositions or other equity transactions or to successfully manage the impacts of such transactions on our operations.
Material acquisitions, dispositions and other strategic transactions involve a number of risks, including: (i) the potential disruption of our ongoing business; (ii) the distraction of management away from the ongoing oversight of our existing business activities; (iii) incurring additional indebtedness; (iv) the anticipated benefits and cost savings of those transactions not being realized fully, or at all, or taking longer to realize than anticipated; (v) an increase in the scope and complexity of our operations; (vi) the loss or reduction of control over certain of our assets; and (vii) capital stock or cash to pay for the acquisition. Material acquisitions and strategic transactions have been and continue to be material to our business strategy. There can be no assurance that we will find suitable opportunities for strategic transactions at acceptable prices, have sufficient capital resources to pursue such transactions, be successful in negotiating required agreements, or successfully close transactions after signing such agreements. There is no guarantee that any acquisitions will be accretive, or that past or future acquisitions will not result in additional impairments or write downs.
The existence of one or more material liabilities of an acquired company that are unknown to us at the time of acquisition could result in our incurring those liabilities. A strategic transaction may result in a significant change in the nature of our business, operations and strategy, and we may encounter unforeseen obstacles or costs in implementing a strategic transaction or integrating any acquired business into our operations.
We are subject to risks inherent in an agricultural business, including the risk of crop failure.
We grow cannabis, which is an agricultural process. As such, our business is subject to the risks inherent in the agricultural business, including risks of crop failure presented by weather, climate change, forest fires, insects, plant diseases and similar agricultural risks. Although we primarily grow our products indoors under climate-controlled conditions, we also have certain outdoor cultivation capacity and there can be no assurance that natural elements, such as insects, climate change and plant diseases, will not interrupt our production activities or have an adverse effect on our business.
We depend on significant customers for a substantial portion of our revenue. If we fail to retain or expand our customer relationships or significant customers reduce their purchases, our revenue could decline significantly.
We derive a significant portion of revenue from the supply contracts we have with 12 Canadian provinces and territories for adult-use cannabis products. There are many factors which could impact our contractual agreements with the provinces and territories, including but not limited to availability of supply, product selection and the popularity of our products with retail customers. If our supply agreements with certain Canadian provinces and territories are amended, terminated or otherwise altered, our sales and results of operations could be adversely affected, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
In addition, not all of our supply contracts with the Canadian provinces and territories contain purchase commitments or otherwise obligate the provincial or territorial wholesaler to buy a minimum or fixed volume of cannabis products from us. The amount of cannabis that the provincial or territorial wholesalers may purchase under the supply contracts may therefore vary from what we expect or planned for. As a result, our revenues could fluctuate materially in the future and could be materially and disproportionately impacted by the purchasing decisions of the provincial or territorial wholesalers. In the future, these customers may decide to purchase less product from us than they have in the past, may alter purchasing patterns or return inventory, or may decide not to continue to purchase our products, any of which could cause our revenue to decline materially and materially harm our financial condition and results of operations. If we are unable to diversify our customer base, we will continue to be susceptible to risks associated with customer concentration.
We may be unable to attract or retain key personnel, and we may be unable to attract, develop and retain additional employees required for our development and future success.
Our success is largely dependent on the performance of our management team and certain employees and our continuing ability to attract, develop, motivate and retain highly qualified and skilled employees. Qualified individuals are in high demand, and we may incur significant costs to attract and retain them. The loss of the services of any key personnel, or an inability to attract other suitably qualified persons when needed, could prevent us from executing on our business plan and strategy, and we may be unable to find adequate replacements on a timely basis, or at all.
Further, officers, directors, and certain key personnel at each of our facilities that are licensed by Health Canada are subject to the requirement to obtain and maintain a security clearance from Health Canada under the CR. Moreover, under the CR, an individual with security clearance must be physically present on site when other individuals are conducting activities with cannabis. Under the CR, a security clearance is valid for a limited time and must be renewed before the expiry of a current security clearance. There is no assurance that any of our existing personnel who presently or may in the future require a security clearance will be able to obtain or renew such clearances or that new personnel who require a security clearance will be able to obtain one. A failure by an individual in a key operational position to maintain or renew his or her security clearance could result in a reduction or complete suspension of our operations. In addition, if an individual in a key operational position leaves us, and we are unable to find a suitable replacement who is able to obtain a security clearance required by the CR in a timely manner, or at all, we may not be able to conduct our operations at planned production volume levels or at all.
The CR also requires us to designate a qualified individual in charge who is responsible for supervising activities relating to the production of study drugs for clinical trials, which individual must meet certain educational and security clearance requirements. If our current designated qualified person in charge fails to maintain their security clearance, or leaves us and we are unable to find a suitable replacement who meets these requirements, we may no longer be able to continue our clinical trial activities.
Increased labor costs, potential organization of our workforce, employee strikes, work stoppages, and other labor-related disruption may adversely affect our business, financial conditions and operations.
Outside Portugal and Portland, Oregon, none of our employees are represented by a labor union or subject to a collective bargaining agreement. In Portugal, none of our employees are represented by a labor union or subject to any workforce-initiated labor agreement. As with other companies carrying on business in Portugal, we are subject to a government-mandated collective bargaining agreement, which grants employees nominal additional benefits beyond those required by the local labor code. We cannot assure that our labor costs going forward will remain competitive based on various factors, such as: (i) our workforce may organize in the future and labor agreements may be put in place that have significantly higher labor rates and company obligations; (ii) our competitors may maintain significantly lower labor costs, thereby reducing or eliminating our comparative advantages vis-à-vis one or more of our competitors or the larger industry; and (iii) our labor costs may increase in connection with our growth. In Portland, Oregon , employees voted to ratify a three-year collective bargaining agreement that covers approximately 50 full-time and part-time employees.
Our unionized workforces could adversely impact our competitiveness and therefore adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. The further unionization of a greater portion of our workforce could also negatively impact our ability to run our business in the most efficient manner to remain competitive.
Significant interruptions in our access to certain supply chains for key inputs such as raw materials, supplies, electricity, water and other utilities may impair our operations.
Our business is dependent on a number of key inputs and their related costs (certain of which are sourced in other countries and on different continents), including raw materials, supplies and equipment related to our operations, as well as electricity, water and other utilities. We operate global manufacturing facilities, and have dispersed suppliers and customers. Governments may regulate or restrict the flow of labor or products, and the Company's operations, suppliers, customers and distribution channels could be severely impacted. While we have not experienced any material supply chain disruptions, any significant future governmental-mandated or market-related interruption, price increase or negative change in the availability or economics of the supply chain for key inputs and, in particular, rising or volatile energy costs could curtail or preclude our ability to continue production. In addition, our operations would be significantly affected by a prolonged power outage.
Our ability to compete is dependent on us having access, at a reasonable cost and in a timely manner, to skilled labor, equipment, parts and components. No assurances can be given that we will be successful in maintaining our required supply of labor, equipment, parts and components. In addition, the invasion of Ukraine by Russia and the resulting measures that have been taken, and could be taken in the future, have and may continue to have a negative impact on our costs, including for input materials, energy and transportation.
We may be negatively impacted by volatility in the political and economic environment, and a period of sustained inflation across the markets in which we operate could result in higher operating costs.
Trade, monetary and fiscal policies, and political and economic conditions may substantially change, and credit markets may experience periods of constriction and variability. These conditions may impact our business. Further rising inflation may negatively impact our business, raise cost and reduce profitability. While we would take actions, wherever possible, to reduce the impact of the effects of inflation, in the case of sustained inflation across several of the markets in which we operate, it could become increasingly difficult to effectively mitigate the increases to our costs. In addition, the effects of inflation on consumers’ budgets could result in the reduction of our customers’ spending habits. If we are unable to take actions to effectively mitigate the effect of the resulting higher costs, our profitability and financial position could be negatively impacted.
We face risks associated with the transportation of our products to consumers in a safe and efficient manner.
We depend on fast, cost-effective, and efficient courier services to distribute our products to both wholesale and retail customers. Any prolonged disruption of third-party transportation services could have a material adverse effect on our sales volumes or satisfaction with our services. Rising costs associated with third-party transportation services used by us to ship our products may also adversely impact our profitability, and more generally our business, financial condition and results of operations.
The security of our products during transportation to and from our facilities is of the utmost concern. A breach of security during transport or delivery could result in the loss of high-value product and forfeiture of import and export approvals, since such approvals are shipment specific. Any failure to take steps necessary to ensure the safekeeping of our cannabis products could also have an impact on our ability to continue supplying provinces and territories, to continue operating under our existing licenses, to renew or receive amendments to our existing licenses or to obtain new licenses.
Our products may be subject to recalls for a variety of reasons, which could require us to expend significant management and capital resources.
Manufacturers and distributors of cannabis, hemp and beverage products are sometimes subject to the recall or return of their products for a variety of reasons, including product defects, such as contamination, adulteration, unintended harmful side effects or interactions with other substances, packaging safety, and inadequate or inaccurate labeling disclosure. Although we have detailed procedures in place for testing finished products, there can be no assurance that any quality, potency or contamination problems will be detected in time to avoid unforeseen product recalls, regulatory action or lawsuits, whether frivolous or otherwise. If any of the products produced by us are recalled due to an alleged product defect or for any other reason, we could be required to incur the unexpected expense of the recall and any legal proceedings that might arise in connection with the recall. As a result of any such recall, we may lose a significant amount of sales and may not be able to replace those sales at an acceptable gross profit or at all. In addition, a product recall may require significant management attention or damage our reputation and goodwill or that of our products or brands.
Additionally, product recalls may lead to increased scrutiny of our operations by Health Canada or other regulatory agencies, requiring further management attention, increased compliance costs and potential legal fees, fines, penalties and other expenses. Any product recall affecting the cannabis industry more broadly, whether or not involving us, could also lead consumers to lose confidence in the safety and security of cannabis products generally, including products sold by us.
We may be subject to product liability claims or regulatory action. This risk is exacerbated by the fact that cannabis use may increase the risk of serious adverse side effects.
As a manufacturer and distributor of products, which are ingested by humans, we face the risk of exposure to product liability claims, regulatory action and litigation if our products are alleged to have caused loss or injury. We may be subject to these types of claims due to allegations that our products caused or contributed to injury or illness, failed to include adequate instructions for use or failed to include adequate warnings concerning possible side effects or interactions with other substances. This risk is exacerbated by the fact that cannabis use may increase the risk of developing schizophrenia and other psychoses, symptoms for individuals with bipolar disorder, and other side effects. Furthermore, we are as of the date of this Form 10-K offering an expanded assortment of form factors, some of which may have additional adverse side effects, such as vaping products. See also Risk Factor “ Our vape business is subject to uncertainty in the evolving vape market due to negative public sentiment and regulatory scrutiny. ” Previously unknown adverse reactions resulting from human consumption of cannabis or beverage products alone or in combination with other medications or substances could also occur.
In addition, the manufacture and sale of our products, like the manufacture and sale of any ingested product, involves a risk of injury to consumers due to tampering by unauthorized third parties or product contamination. We have in the past recalled, and may again in the future have to recall, certain products as a result of potential contamination and quality assurance concerns. A product liability claim or regulatory action against us could result in increased costs and could adversely affect our reputation and goodwill with our customers and consumers generally. There can be no assurance that we will be able to maintain product liability insurance on acceptable terms or with adequate coverage against potential liabilities. Such insurance is expensive and may not be available in the future on acceptable terms, or at all. The inability to obtain sufficient insurance coverage on reasonable terms or to otherwise protect against potential product liability claims could result in us becoming subject to significant liabilities that are uninsured and adversely affect our commercial arrangements with third parties.
We, or the cannabis industry more generally, may receive unfavorable publicity or become subject to negative consumer or investor perception.
We believe that the cannabis industry is highly dependent upon positive consumer and investor perception regarding the benefits, safety, efficacy and quality of the cannabis distributed to consumers. The perception of the cannabis industry and cannabis products, currently and in the future, may be significantly influenced by scientific research or findings, regulatory investigations, litigation, political statements, media attention and other publicity (whether or not accurate or with merit) both in Canada and in other countries relating to the consumption of cannabis products, including unexpected safety or efficacy concerns arising with respect to cannabis products or the activities of industry participants. There can be no assurance that future scientific research, findings, regulatory proceedings, litigation, media attention or other research findings or publicity will be favorable to the cannabis market or any particular cannabis product or will be consistent with earlier publicity. Adverse scientific research reports, findings and regulatory proceedings that are, or litigation, media attention or other publicity that is, perceived as less favorable than, or that questions, earlier research reports, findings or publicity (whether or not accurate or with merit) could result in a significant reduction in the demand for our products. Further, adverse publicity reports or other media attention regarding the safety, efficacy and quality of cannabis, or our products specifically, or associating the consumption of cannabis with illness or other negative effects or events, could adversely affect us. This adverse publicity could arise even if the adverse effects associated with cannabis products resulted from consumers’ failure to use such products legally, appropriately or as directed.
Failure to comply with safety, health and environmental regulations applicable to our operations and industry may expose us to liability and impact operations.
Safety, health and environmental laws and regulations affect nearly all aspects of our operations, including product development, working conditions, waste disposal, emission controls, the maintenance of air and water quality standards and land reclamation, and, with respect to environmental laws and regulations, impose limitations on the generation, transportation, storage and disposal of solid and hazardous waste. Compliance with GMP requires satisfying additional standards for the conduct of our operations and subjects us to ongoing compliance inspections in respect of these standards in connection with our GMP certified facilities. Compliance with safety, health and environmental laws and regulations can require significant expenditures, and failure to comply with such safety, health and environmental laws and regulations may result in the imposition of fines and penalties, the temporary or permanent suspension of operations, the imposition of clean-up costs resulting from contaminated properties, the imposition of damages and the loss of or refusal of governmental authorities to issue permits or licenses to us or to certify our compliance with GMP standards. Exposure to these liabilities may arise in connection with our existing operations, our historical operations and operations that we may undertake in the future. We could also be held liable for worker exposure to hazardous substances and for accidents causing injury or death. There can be no assurance that we will at all times be in compliance with all safety, health and environmental laws and regulations notwithstanding our attempts to comply with such laws and regulations.
In addition, government environmental approvals and permits are currently, and may in the future be required in connection with our operations. To the extent such approvals are required and not obtained, we may be curtailed or prohibited from its proposed business activities or from proceeding with the development of our operations as currently proposed. Failure to comply with applicable environmental laws, regulations and permitting requirements may result in enforcement actions thereunder, including orders issued by regulatory or judicial authorities causing operations to cease or be curtailed, and may include corrective measures requiring capital expenditures, installation of additional equipment, or remedial actions. We may be required to compensate those suffering loss or damage due to our operations and may have civil or criminal fines or penalties imposed for violations of applicable environmental laws or regulations.
Changes in applicable safety, health and environmental standards may impose stricter standards and enforcement, increased fines and penalties for non-compliance, more stringent environmental assessments of proposed projects and a heightened degree of responsibility for companies and their officers, directors and employees. We are not able to determine the specific impact that future changes in safety, health and environmental laws and regulations may have on our industry, operations and/or activities and our resulting financial position; however, we anticipate that capital expenditures and operating expenses will increase in the future as a result of the implementation of new and increasingly stringent safety, health and environmental laws and regulations. Further changes in safety, health and environmental laws and regulations, new information on existing safety, health and environmental conditions or other events, including legal proceedings based upon such conditions or an inability to obtain necessary permits in relation thereto, may require increased compliance expenditures by us.
We may experience breaches of security at our facilities, which could result in product loss and liability.
Because of the nature of our products and the limited legal channels for distribution, as well as the concentration of inventory in our facilities, we are subject to the risk of theft of our products and other security breaches. A security breach at any one of our facilities could result in a significant loss of available products, expose us to additional liability under applicable regulations and to potentially costly litigation or increase expenses relating to the resolution and future prevention of similar thefts, any of which could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We may be subject to risks related to our information technology systems, including service interruption, cyber-attacks and misappropriation of data, which could disrupt operations and may result in financial losses and reputational damage.
We have entered into agreements with third parties for hardware, software, telecommunications and other information technology, or IT, services in connection with our operations. Our operations depend, in part, on how well we and our vendors protect networks, equipment, IT systems and software against damage from a number of threats, including, but not limited to, cable cuts, damage to physical plants, natural disasters, intentional damage and destruction, fire, power loss, hacking, computer viruses, vandalism, theft, malware, ransomware and phishing attacks. We are increasingly reliant on Cloud-based systems for economies of scale and our mobile workforce, which could result in increased attack vectors or other significant disruptions to our work processes. Any of these and other events could result in IT system failures, delays or increases in capital expenses. Our operations also depend on the timely maintenance, upgrade and replacement of networks, equipment and IT systems and software, as well as preemptive expenses to mitigate the risks of failures. The failure of IT systems or a component of IT systems could, depending on the nature of any such failure, adversely impact our reputation and results of operations.
There are a number of laws protecting the confidentiality of personal information and patient health information, and restricting the use and disclosure of that protected information. In particular, the privacy rules under the Personal Information Protection and Electronics Documents Act (Canada), or PIPEDA, the European Unions’ General Data Protection Regulation, or the GDPR, and similar laws in other jurisdictions, protect personal information, including medical records of individuals. We collect and store personal information about our employees and customers and are responsible for protecting that information from privacy breaches. A privacy breach may occur through a procedural or process failure, an IT malfunction or deliberate unauthorized intrusions. Theft of data for competitive purposes, particularly patient lists and preferences, is an ongoing risk whether perpetrated through employee collusion or negligence or through deliberate cyber-attack. Moreover, if we are found to be in violation of the privacy or security rules under PIPEDA or other laws protecting the confidentiality of patient health information, including as a result of data theft and privacy breaches, we could be subject to sanction, litigation and civil or criminal penalties, which could increase our liabilities and harm our reputation.
As cyber threats continue to evolve, we may be required to expend significant additional resources to continue to modify or enhance our protective measures or to investigate and remediate any information security vulnerabilities. While we have implemented security resources to protect our data security and information technology systems, such measures may not prevent such events. Significant disruption to our information technology system or breaches of data security could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
The cannabis industry continues to face significant funding challenges, and we may not be able to secure adequate or reliable sources of funding, which may impact our operations and potential expansion.
The continued development of our business will require significant additional financing, and there is no assurance that we will be able to obtain the financing necessary to achieve our business objectives. Our ability to obtain additional financing will depend on investor demand, our performance and reputation, market conditions, and other factors. Our inability to raise such capital could result in the delay or indefinite postponement of our current business objectives or our inability to continue to operate our business. There can be no assurance that additional capital or other types of equity or debt financing will be available if needed or that, if available, the terms of such financing will be favorable to us.
In addition, from time to time, we may enter into transactions to acquire assets or the capital stock or other equity interests of other entities. Our continued growth may be financed, wholly or partially, with debt, which may increase our debt levels above industry standards.
Our existing and future debt agreements may contain covenant restrictions that limit our ability to operate our business and pursue beneficial transactions.
Our existing debt agreements and future debt agreements may contain, covenant restrictions that limit our ability to operate our business, including restrictions on our ability to invest in our existing facilities, incur additional debt or issue guarantees, create additional liens, repurchase stock or make other restricted payments. As a result of these covenants, our ability to respond to changes in business and economic conditions and engage in beneficial transactions, including to obtain additional financing and pursue business opportunities, may be restricted. Furthermore, our failure to comply with our debt covenants could result in a default under our debt agreements, which could permit the holders to accelerate our obligation to repay the debt and to enforce security over our assets. If any of our debt is accelerated, we may not have sufficient funds available to repay it or be able to obtain new financing to refinance the debt.
Servicing our debt will require a significant amount of cash, and we may not have sufficient cash flow from our business to pay our debt.
Our consolidated indebtedness (refer to the consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Form 10-K) may increase our vulnerability to any generally adverse economic and industry conditions. We and our subsidiaries may, subject to the limitations in the terms of our existing and future indebtedness, incur additional debt, secure existing or future debt or recapitalize our debt. Our ability to make scheduled payments of the principal of, to pay interest on or to refinance our current and future indebtedness, depends on our future performance, which is subject to economic, financial, competitive and other factors beyond our control, including rising interest rates. Our business has not generated positive cash flow from operations. If this continues in the future, we may not have sufficient cash flows to service our debt and make necessary capital expenditures. If we are unable to generate such cash flow, we may be required to adopt one or more alternatives, such as selling assets, restructuring debt or obtaining additional equity capital on terms that may be onerous or highly dilutive. Our ability to refinance our current and future indebtedness will depend on the capital markets and our financial condition at such time. We may not be able to engage in any of these activities or engage in these activities on desirable terms, which could result in a default on our debt obligations.
Management may not be able to successfully establish and maintain effective internal controls over financial reporting.
Management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting. As defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d(f) under the Exchange Act, internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of our financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with United States Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“GAAP”). Due to the work around integration and modification to internal control over financial reporting and other policies and procedures, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.
It is not expected that our disclosure controls and procedures and internal controls over financial reporting will prevent all error or fraud. A control system, no matter how well designed and implemented, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the control system’s objectives will be met. Further, the design of a control system must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints, and the benefits of controls must be considered relative to their costs. Due to inherent limitations, our internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect all misstatements. The inherent limitations include the realities that judgments in decision-making can be faulty, and that breakdowns can occur because of simple errors or mistakes. Controls can also be circumvented by individual acts of certain persons, by collusion of two or more people or by management override of the controls. Due to the inherent limitations in a cost-effective control system, misstatements due to error or fraud may occur and may not be detected in a timely manner or at all. We cannot guarantee that we will not have a material weakness in our internal controls in the future. If we experience any material weakness in our internal controls in the future, our financial statements may contain misstatements and we could be required to restate our financial statements.
Since a significant portion of our sales are generated in Canada and other countries outside the United States, fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates could harm our results of operations.
The reporting currency for our financial statements is the United States dollar. We derive a significant portion of our revenue and incur a significant portion of our operating costs in Canada and Europe, as well as other countries outside the United States, including Australia. As a result, changes in the exchange rate in these jurisdictions relative to the United States dollar, may have a significant, and potentially adverse, effect on our results of operations. Our primary risk of loss regarding foreign currency exchange rate risk is caused by fluctuations in the exchange rates between the United States dollar against the Canadian dollar and the Euro, although as we expand internationally, we will be subject to additional foreign currency exchange risks. Because we recognize revenue in Canada in Canadian dollars and revenue in Europe in Euros, if either or both of these currencies weaken against the United States dollar it would have a negative impact on our Canadian and/or European operating results upon the translation of those results into United States dollars for the purposes of consolidation. In addition, a weakening of these foreign currencies against the United States dollar would make it more difficult for us to meet our obligations under the convertible securities we have issued. We have not historically engaged in hedging transactions and do not currently contemplate engaging in hedging transactions to mitigate foreign exchange risks. As we continue to recognize gains and losses in foreign currency transactions, depending upon changes in future currency rates, such gains or losses could have a significant, and potentially adverse, effect on our results of operations.
We may have exposure to greater than anticipated tax liabilities, which could harm our business.
Our income tax obligations are based on our corporate operating structure and third-party and intercompany arrangements, including the manner in which we develop, value and use our intellectual property and the valuations of our intercompany transactions. The tax laws applicable to our international business activities, including the laws of the United States, Canada and other jurisdictions, are subject to change and uncertain interpretation. The taxing authorities of the jurisdictions in which we operate may challenge our methodologies for valuing developed technology, intercompany arrangements, or transfer pricing, all of which could increase our worldwide effective tax rate and the amount of taxes that we pay and harm our business. Taxing authorities may also determine that the manner in which we operate our business is not consistent with how we report our income, which could increase our effective tax rate and the amount of taxes that we pay and could seriously harm our business. In addition, our future income taxes could fluctuate because of earnings being lower than anticipated in jurisdictions that have lower statutory tax rates and higher than anticipated in jurisdictions that have higher statutory tax rates, by changes in the valuation of our deferred tax assets and liabilities or by changes in tax laws, regulations or accounting principles.
We are subject to regular review and audit by federal, state, provincial and local tax authorities. Any adverse outcome from a review or audit could seriously harm our business. In addition, determining our worldwide provision for income taxes and other tax liabilities requires significant judgment by management, and there are many transactions where the ultimate tax determination is uncertain. Although we believe that the amounts recorded in our financial statements are reasonable, the ultimate tax outcome relating to such amounts may differ for such period or periods and may seriously harm our business. Furthermore, due to shifting economic and political conditions, tax policies, laws, or rates in various jurisdictions, we may be subject to significant changes in ways that impair our financial results. Our results of operations and cash flows could be adversely affected by additional taxes imposed on us prospectively or retroactively or additional taxes or penalties resulting from the failure to comply with any collection obligations or failure to provide information for tax reporting purposes to various government agencies.
We may not be able to utilize our net operating loss carryforwards which could result in greater than anticipated tax liabilities.
We have accumulated net operating loss carryforwards in the United States, Canada and other jurisdictions. Our ability to use our net operating loss carryforwards is dependent upon our ability to generate taxable income in future periods. In addition, these net operating loss carryforwards could expire unused or be subject to limitations which impact our ability to offset future income tax liabilities. U.S. federal net operating losses incurred in 2018 and in future years may be carried forward indefinitely. However, our Canadian net operating loss carryforwards begin to expire in 2028, and limited carryforward periods also exist in other jurisdictions. As a result, we may not be able realize the full benefit of our net operating loss carryforwards in Canada and other jurisdictions, which could result in increased future tax liability to us. Further, our ability to utilize net operating loss carryforwards in the United States and other jurisdictions could be limited from ownership changes in the current and/or prior periods.
Risks Related to Ownership of Our Securities
Our failure to meet the continued listing requirements of Nasdaq could result in a delisting of our securities.
On March 25, 2025, the Company received written notice (the “Notice”) from the Nasdaq Listing Qualifications Department of the Nasdaq Stock Market, LLC (“Nasdaq”) notifying the Company that it is not in compliance with the minimum bid price requirement set forth in Nasdaq Listing Rule 5450(a)(1) for continued listing on The Nasdaq Global Select Market. Nasdaq Listing Rule 5450(a)(1) requires listed securities to maintain a minimum bid price of $1.00 per share, and Listing Rule 5810(c)(3)(A) provides that a failure to meet the minimum bid price requirement exists if the deficiency continues for a period of 30 consecutive business days. The Notice does not impact the listing of the Company’s common stock on The Nasdaq Global Select Market at this time. In accordance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5810(c)(3)(A), the Company has 180 calendar days to regain compliance with the minimum bid price requirement. To regain compliance, the closing bid price of the Company’s common stock must be at least $1.00 per share for a minimum of ten consecutive business days before September 21, 2025. In the event that the Company does not regain compliance within this 180-day period, the Company may be eligible to transfer from the Nasdaq Global Select Market to the Nasdaq Capital Market and seek an additional compliance period of 180 calendar days if it meets the continued listing requirement for market value of publicly held shares and all other initial listing standards for The Nasdaq Capital Market, with the exception of the minimum bid price requirement, and provides written notice to Nasdaq of its intent to cure the deficiency during this second compliance period by effecting a reverse stock split if necessary. However, if it appears to the Nasdaq staff that the Company will not be able to cure the deficiency, or if the Company is otherwise not eligible, Nasdaq will provide notice to the Company that its common stock will be subject to delisting. The Company is actively monitoring the closing bid price of its common stock and evaluating available options to regain compliance with the minimum bid price requirement. There can be no assurance that the Company will regain compliance with Nasdaq’s minimum bid price requirements.
There is Uncertainty Regarding the Impact of Tilray Implementing a Reverse Stock Split.
Tilray’s board of directors and stockholders have both approved a reverse stock split intended to comply with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5450(a)(1) and sustain our listing on The Nasdaq Global Select Market. However, the board of directors is continuing to consider whether and when to effect a reverse stock split. This uncertainty, combined with the unpredictable stock market behavior inherent in implementing a reverse split, could result in execution challenges and heightened market volatility, potentially undermining investor confidence or affecting our share price.
The proposed reverse split may be perceived by the market as an indicator of underlying financial or strategic challenges, which could adversely affect trading liquidity and shareholder sentiment. A reduction in the number of outstanding shares, while designed to boost our per‑share market price, carries the risk of dampening the overall attractiveness of our securities. Additionally, the reverse split process demands significant management focus and resource allocation, posing the risk of diverting attention from our core strategic initiatives. Strict regulatory compliance is crucial, and any difficulties in meeting these requirements or managing unforeseen adverse market conditions following the split could have a lasting impact on our stock’s trading dynamics.
The price of our common stock in public markets has experienced and may continue to experience severe volatility and fluctuations.
The market price for our common stock, and the market price of stock of other companies operating in the cannabis industry, has been extremely volatile. For example, during the 2025 fiscal year, the trading price of our common stock ranged between a low sales price of $0.42 and a high sales price of $2.03. The market price of our common stock may continue to be volatile and subject to wide fluctuations in response to numerous factors, many of which are beyond our control, including the following: (i) actual or anticipated fluctuations in our quarterly results of operations; (ii) recommendations by securities research analysts; (iii) changes in the economic performance or market valuations of other issuers that investors deem comparable to us; (iv) the addition or departure of our executive officers or other key personnel; (v) the release or expiration of lock-up or other transfer restrictions on our common stock; (vi) sales or perceived sales, or the expectation of future sales, of our common stock; (vii) significant acquisitions or business combinations, strategic partnerships, joint ventures or capital commitments by or involving us or our competitors; (viii) news reports or social media relating to trends, concerns, technological or competitive developments, regulatory changes and other related issues in the cannabis industry or our target markets; and (ix) the increase in the number of retail investors and their participation in social media platforms targeted at speculative investing.
The volatility of our stock and the stockholder base may hinder or prevent us from engaging in beneficial corporate initiatives.
Our stockholder base is comprised of a large number of retail (or non-institutional) investors, which creates more volatility since stock changes hands frequently. In accordance with our governing documents and applicable laws, there are a number of initiatives that require the approval of stockholders at the annual or a special meeting. To hold a valid meeting, a quorum comprised of stockholders representing one-third of the voting power of our outstanding shares of common stock is necessary. A record date is established to determine which stockholders are eligible to vote at the meeting, which record date must be 30 – 60 days prior to the meeting. Since our stocks change hands frequently, there can be a significant turnover of stockholders between the record date and the meeting date which makes it harder to get stockholders to vote. While we make every effort to engage retail investors, such efforts can be expensive and the frequent turnover creates logistical issues. Further retail investors tend to be less likely to vote in comparison to institutional investors. Failure to secure sufficient votes or to achieve the minimum quorum needed for a meeting to happen may impede our ability to move forward with initiatives that are intended to grow the business and create stockholder value or prevent us from engaging in such initiatives at all. If we find it necessary to delay or adjourn meetings or to seek approval again, it will be time consuming and we will incur additional costs.
The terms of our outstanding warrants may limit our ability to raise additional equity capital or pursue acquisitions, which may impact funding of our ongoing operations and cause significant dilution to existing stockholders.
On March 13, 2020, we entered into an underwriting agreement with Canaccord Genuity LLC relating to the issuance and sale of shares of our common stock at a price to the public of $4.76 per share and included warrants to purchase additional common stock at a price of $5.95 per warrant. As of May 31, 2025, 6,209,000 warrants remain outstanding and do not expire until September 17, 2025. The warrants contain a price protection, or anti-dilution feature, pursuant to which, the exercise price of such warrants will be reduced to the consideration paid for, or the exercise price or conversion price of, as the case may be, any newly issued securities issued at a discount to the original warrant exercise price of $5.95 per share. Therefore, the exercise price of the warrants may end up being lower than $5.95 per share, which could result in incremental dilution to existing stockholders.
Additionally, so long as the warrants remain outstanding, we may only issue up to $20 million in aggregate gross proceeds under our at-the-market offering program at prices less than the exercise price of the warrants, and in no event more than $6 million per quarter at prices below the exercise price of the warrants, without triggering the warrant’s anti-dilution feature described in the paragraph immediately above. During the fiscal period, our stock price traded below the warrant exercise price of $5.95 per share for an extended time. As a result, the warrant exercise price was contractually lowered. As of May 31, 2025, the warrant exercise price was $0.42. Refer to Part II, Item 8, Note 18, Warrants , of this Form 10-K for additional information.
If securities or industry analysts do not publish research, or publish inaccurate or unfavorable research, about our business, our stock price and trading volume could decline.
The trading market for our common stock depends, in part, on the research and reports that securities or industry analysts publish about us or our business. We do not have any control over these analysts. If one or more of the securities or industry analysts who cover us downgrade our stock or publish inaccurate or unfavorable research about our business, our stock price would likely decline. In addition, if our operating results fail to meet the forecast of analysts, our stock price would likely decline. If one or more of these analysts cease coverage of our company or fail to publish reports on us regularly, demand for our stock could decrease, which might cause our stock price and trading volume to decline.
Risks Related to our Convertible Securities
We may not have the ability to raise the funds necessary to settle conversions of the Convertible Securities in cash or to repurchase the Convertible Securities upon a fundamental change.
We issued various securities convertible into shares of our common stock, or “Convertible Securities”. Holders of certain Convertible Securities have the right to require us to repurchase their Convertible Securities upon the occurrence of a fundamental change. In addition, upon conversion, unless we deliver solely shares of our common stock to settle such conversion (other than paying cash in lieu of delivering any fractional share), we will be required to make cash payments in respect of the Convertible Securities being converted. However, we may not have enough available cash or be able to obtain financing at the time we are required to make repurchases of Convertible Securities surrendered. In addition, our ability to repurchase the Convertible Securities or to pay cash upon conversions of the Convertible Securities may be limited by law, by regulatory authority or by agreements governing our future indebtedness. Our failure to repurchase Convertible Securities at a time when the repurchase is required by the indenture or to pay any cash payable on future conversions of the Convertible Securities as required by the indenture would constitute a default under the indenture. A default under the indenture or the fundamental change itself could also lead to a default under agreements governing our existing or future indebtedness. If the repayment of the related indebtedness were to be accelerated after any applicable notice or grace periods, we may not have sufficient funds to repay the indebtedness and repurchase the Convertible Securities or make cash payments upon conversions thereof.
The conditional conversion feature of the Convertible Securities, if triggered, may adversely affect our financial condition and operating results.
In the event a conditional conversion feature of the Convertible Securities is triggered, holders of Convertible Securities will be entitled to convert the Convertible Securities at any time during specified periods at their option. If one or more holders elect to convert their Convertible Securities, unless we elect to satisfy our conversion obligation by delivering solely shares of our common stock (other than paying cash in lieu of delivering any fractional share), we would be required to settle a portion or all of our conversion obligation through the payment of cash, which could adversely affect our liquidity. In addition, even if holders of Convertible Securities do not elect to convert their Convertible Securities, we could be required under applicable accounting rules to reclassify all or a portion of the outstanding principal of the Convertible Securities as a current rather than long-term liability, which would result in a material reduction of our net working capital.
Conversion of the Convertible Securities may dilute the ownership interest of our stockholders or may otherwise depress the price of our common stock.
The conversion of some or all of the Convertible Securities may dilute the ownership interests of our stockholders. Upon conversion of the Convertible Securities, we have the option to pay or deliver, as the case may be, cash, shares of our common stock, or a combination of cash and shares of our common stock. If we elect to settle our conversion obligation in shares of our common stock or a combination of cash and shares of our common stock, any sales in the public market of our common stock issuable upon such conversion could adversely affect prevailing market prices of our common stock. In addition, the existence of the Convertible Securities may encourage short selling by market participants because the conversion of the Convertible Securities could be used to satisfy short positions, or anticipated conversion of the Convertible Securities into shares of our common stock could depress the price of our common stock.
Certain provisions in the indentures governing the Convertible Securities may delay or prevent an otherwise beneficial takeover attempt of us.
Certain provisions in the indentures governing the Convertible Securities may make it more difficult or expensive for a third party to acquire us. For example, we may be required to repurchase certain Convertible Securities for cash upon the occurrence of a fundamental change and, in certain circumstances, to increase the relevant conversion rate for a holder that converts its Convertible Securities in connection with a make-whole fundamental change. A takeover of us may trigger the requirement that we repurchase the Convertible Securities and/or increase the conversion rate, which could make it more costly for a potential acquirer to engage in such takeover. Such additional costs may have the effect of delaying or preventing a takeover of us that would otherwise be beneficial to investors.
Our stockholders may be subject to dilution resulting from future offerings of common stock by us.
We may raise additional funds in the future by issuing common stock or equity-linked securities. Holders of our securities have no preemptive rights in connection with such further issuances. Our board of directors has the discretion to determine if an issuance of our capital stock is warranted, the price at which such issuance is to be effected and the other terms of any future issuance of capital stock. In addition, additional common stock will be issued by us in connection with the exercise of options or grant of other equity awards granted by us. Such additional equity issuances could, depending on the price at which such securities are issued, substantially dilute the interests of the holders of our existing securities.
Provisions in our corporate charter documents could make an acquisition of us more difficult and may prevent attempts by our stockholders to replace or remove our current board of directors.
Provisions in our corporate charter and our bylaws may discourage, delay or prevent a merger, acquisition or other change in control of us that stockholders may consider favorable, including transactions in which stockholders might otherwise receive a premium for their shares. These provisions could also limit the price that investors might be willing to pay in the future for shares of our common stock, thereby depressing the market price of our common stock. In addition, these provisions may frustrate or prevent any attempts by our stockholders to replace or remove our current management by making it more difficult for stockholders to replace members of our board of directors. Because our board of directors is responsible for appointing the members of our management team, these provisions could in turn affect any attempt by our stockholders to replace current members of our management team. Among others, these provisions include the following:
Our board of directors is divided into three classes with staggered three-year terms which may delay or prevent a change of our management or a change in control;
Our board of directors has the right to elect directors to fill a vacancy created by the expansion of the board of directors or the resignation, death or removal of a director, which prevents stockholders from being able to fill vacancies on our board of directors;
Except in limited circumstances, our stockholders may not act by written consent or call special stockholders’ meetings; as a result, a holder, or holders, controlling a majority of our capital stock would not be able to take certain actions other than at annual stockholders’ meetings or special stockholders’ meetings called by the board of directors, the chairman of the board or our chief executive officer;
Our certificate of incorporation prohibits cumulative voting in the election of directors, which limits the ability of minority stockholders to elect director candidates;
Stockholders must provide advance notice and additional disclosures in order to nominate individuals for election to the board of directors or to propose matters that can be acted upon at a stockholders’ meeting, which may discourage or deter a potential acquirer from conducting a solicitation of proxies to elect the acquirer’s own slate of directors or otherwise attempting to obtain control of our company; and
Our board of directors may issue, without stockholder approval, shares of undesignated preferred stock; the ability to issue undesignated preferred stock makes it possible for our board of directors to issue preferred stock with voting or other rights or preferences that could impede the success of any attempt to acquire us.
Risks Related to our Planned Cryptocurrency Strategy.
Our cryptocurrency strategy faces high risk and uncertainty in light of market volatility and an evolving regulatory landscape.
Our decision to invest in and hold digital assets – including Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies—as a recent addition to our treasury management strategy poses considerable risks that could materially harm our operating results and financial condition. The inherent volatility in cryptocurrency markets can lead to rapid and substantial fluctuations in the value of our digital asset holdings; such volatility may force us to liquidate positions at unfavorable prices, thereby significantly impairing our liquidity and overall financial stability.
Moreover, our cryptocurrency strategy is developing amid a continuously changing and uncertain regulatory environment. Evolving cryptocurrency regulations and varying interpretations and enforcement policies of existing laws in the United States and internationally may impose new compliance burdens, disrupt our planned operations, or necessitate significant modifications to our existing business practices. Any adverse regulatory action or delay in clarity could escalate our operational costs, materially harm the value of our digital asset holdings, restrict our flexibility in managing these assets, and damage our reputation with investors and counterparties.
Additionally, the unique audit, accounting, and internal control challenges associated with managing digital assets add further complexity to our risk profile. As current financial reporting standards may not fully capture the nuances of digital asset investments, future modifications to these standards could require substantial changes in our accounting policies and internal controls. Our reliance on third-party custodial, trading and transaction platforms for the storage and processing of these assets also exposes us to increased cybersecurity threats, operational disruptions, and risks stemming from third-party service providers, each of which could result in significant financial inaccuracies, legal liabilities, or reputational damage. Relatedly, digital asset custodial accounts do not benefit from customary regulatory, insurance and safeguard regimes available to traditional brokerage and deposit accounts.
Given the nascent and rapidly evolving nature of digital asset markets, any unfavorable developments in market conditions, regulatory frameworks, or technological vulnerabilities could severely undermine our ability to execute our digital asset strategy effectively. Any significant adverse developments in the digital asset space may have a material negative impact on our long-term performance and strategic goals.
Risks Related to our Intellectual Property
We may not be able to adequately protect our intellectual property.
As long as cannabis remains illegal under U.S. federal law as a scheduled controlled substance under the CSA, the benefit of certain federal laws and protections that may be available to most businesses, such as federal trademark and patent protection, may not be available to us. As a result, our intellectual property may not be adequately or sufficiently protected against the use or misappropriation by third parties under such U.S. laws. In addition, since the regulatory framework of the cannabis industry is in a state of flux, we can provide no assurance that we will obtain protection for our intellectual property, whether on a federal, state or local level.
We may not realize the full benefit of the clinical trials or studies that we participate in if we are unable to secure ownership or the exclusive right to use the resulting intellectual property on commercially reasonable terms.
Although we have participated in several clinical trials, we are not the sponsor of many of these trials and, as such, do not have full control over the design, conduct and terms of the trials. In some cases, for instance, we are only the provider of a cannabis study drug for a trial that is designed and initiated by an independent investigator within an academic institution. In such cases, we are often not able to acquire rights to all the intellectual property generated by the trials. Although the terms of all clinical trial agreements entered into by us provide us with, at a minimum, ownership of intellectual property relating directly to the study drug being trialed ( e.g. intellectual property relating to use of the study drug), ownership of intellectual property that does not relate directly to the study drug is often retained by the institution. As such, we are vulnerable to any dispute among the investigator, the institution and us with respect to classification and therefore ownership of any particular piece of intellectual property generated during the trial. Such a dispute may affect our ability to make full use of intellectual property generated by a clinical trial.
Where intellectual property generated by a trial is owned by the institution, we are often granted a right of first negotiation to obtain an exclusive license to such intellectual property. If we exercise such a right, there is a risk that the parties will fail to come to an agreement on the license, in which case such intellectual property may be licensed to other parties or commercialized by the institution.
General Risk Factors
We may not be able to maintain adequate insurance coverage, the premiums may not continue to be commercially justifiable, and coverage limitations or exclusions may leave us exposed to uninsured liabilities.
We currently maintain insurance coverage, including product liability insurance, protecting many, but not all, of our assets and operations. Our insurance coverage is subject to coverage limits and exclusions and may not be available for all of the risks and hazards to which we are exposed, or the coverage limits may not be sufficient to protect against the full amount of loss. In addition, no assurance can be given that such insurance will be adequate to cover our liabilities, including potential product liability claims, or will be generally available in the future or, if available, that premiums will be commercially justifiable. If we were to incur substantial liability and such damages were not covered by insurance or were in excess of policy limits, we may be exposed to material uninsured liabilities that could diminish our liquidity, profitability or solvency.
The financial reporting obligations of being a public company and maintaining a dual listing on the TSX and on NASDAQ requires significant company resources and management attention.
We are subject to the public company reporting obligations under the Exchange Act and the rules and regulations regarding corporate governance practices, including those under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the Dodd-Frank Act, and the listing requirements of Nasdaq Global Select Market (“NASDAQ”) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (“TSX”). We incur significant legal, accounting, reporting and other expenses in order to maintain a dual listing on both the TSX and NASDAQ. Moreover, our listing on both the TSX and NASDAQ may increase price volatility due to various factors, including the ability to buy or sell common shares, different market conditions in different capital markets and different trading volumes. In addition, low trading volume may increase the price volatility of the common shares.
As a cannabis company, we may be subject to heightened scrutiny in Canada and the United States that could materially adversely impact the liquidity of our shares of common stock.
Our existing operations in the United States, and any future operations, may become the subject of heightened scrutiny by regulators, stock exchanges and other authorities in the United States and Canada.
Given the heightened risk profile associated with cannabis in the United States, the Canadian Depository for Securities Ltd., or CDS, may implement procedures or protocols that would prohibit or significantly impair the ability of CDS to settle trades for companies that have cannabis businesses or assets in the United States.
On February 8, 2018, following discussions with the Canadian Securities Administrators and recognized Canadian securities exchanges, the TMX Group, the parent company of CDS, announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (the “TMX MOU”) with Aequitas NEO Exchange Inc., the CSE, the Toronto Stock Exchange, and the TSX Venture Exchange. The TMX MOU outlines the parties’ understanding of Canada’s regulatory framework applicable to the rules, procedures, and regulatory oversight of the exchanges and CDS as it relates to issuers with cannabis-related activities in the United States. The TMX MOU confirms, with respect to the clearing of listed securities, that CDS relies on the exchanges to review the conduct of listed issuers. As a result, there is no CDS ban on the clearing of securities of issuers with cannabis-related activities in the United States. However, there can be no assurances given that this approach to regulation will continue in the future. If such a ban were to be implemented, it could have a material adverse effect on the ability of holders of the common stock to settle trades. In particular, the shares of common stock would become highly illiquid until an alternative was implemented, and investors would have no ability to effect a trade of the common stock through the facilities of a stock exchange.
Tax and accounting requirements may change in ways that are unforeseen to us and we may face difficulty or be unable to implement or comply with any such changes.
We are subject to numerous tax and accounting requirements, and changes in existing accounting or taxation rules or practices, or varying interpretations of current rules or practices, could have a significant adverse effect on our financial results, the manner in which we conduct our business or the marketability of any of our products. We currently maintain international operations and plan to expand such operations in the future. These operations, and any expansion thereto, will require us to comply with the tax laws and regulations of multiple jurisdictions, which may vary substantially. Complying with the tax laws of these jurisdictions can be time consuming and expensive and could potentially subject us to penalties and fees in the future if we fail to comply.
We may be materially adversely affected by negative impacts on the global economy, capital markets or other geopolitical conditions resulting from the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran and other terrorist organizations, the invasion of Ukraine by Russia and subsequent sanctions against Russia, Belarus and related individuals and entities and other negative impacts on the global economy.
United States and global markets are experiencing volatility and disruption following the escalation of geopolitical tensions and the invasion of Ukraine by Russia in 2022, and the 2025 Israeli war with Iran. The invasion of Ukraine by Russia and the resulting measures that have been taken, and could be taken in the future, by NATO, the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union, as well as the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran, have created global security concerns that could have a lasting impact on regional and global economies. Although the length and impact of these ongoing military conflicts is highly unpredictable, they could lead to market disruptions, including significant volatility in commodity prices, credit and capital markets, as well as supply chain interruptions. Additionally, any escalation of military actions and sanctions could adversely affect the global economy and financial markets and lead to instability and lack of liquidity in capital markets.
Any of the above mentioned activities, or any other negative impact on the global economy, capital markets or other geopolitical conditions resulting from the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the Israeli war with Iran, could adversely affect our business. The extent and duration of these ongoing conflicts, resulting sanctions and any related market disruptions are impossible to predict, but could be substantial, particularly if current or new sanctions continue for an extended period of time or if geopolitical tensions result in expanded military operations on a global scale. Any such disruptions may also have the effect of heightening many of the other risks described in this “Risk Factors” section, such as those related to the market for our securities, cross-border transactions or our ability to raise equity or debt financing. If these disputes or other matters of global concern continue for an extensive period of time, our operations may be adversely affected.
In addition, the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, and the impact of sanctions against Russia, and the potential for retaliatory acts from Russia, could result in increased cyber-attacks against U.S. companies.
