Medical marijuana industry faces banking disparities between state and federal regulations.

Cannabis bankers like Brian Bauer of Abaca Bank, based in Arkansas, says dispensaries in Mississippi have options to legally transfer cash transactions into the banking system through local financial partnerships that are familiar with regulations in the industry. 

"We have solutions and strategies that help our retail clients reduce physical cash on site by up to 50 percent. But then when those dispensaries go to make wholesale purchases you often see that in markets these days, as they emerge, businesses are getting banked, and they are able to make B2B transactions electronically in the vast majority of cases," Bauer says.

Because marijuana is not legal on the federal level, the differences in state and federal laws creates the side effect of a cash-heavy business in the retail division. That is because national bank card carriers like MasterCard and Visa are still not accepting debit or credit card transactions for medical marijuana.

"So you'll still end up with a very cash-intensive business - about 50 percent of retailers will continue to transact in cash," Bauer explains. He explains that most dispensaries will have ATM's on site for this purpose.

Bauer explains that Mississippi's cannabis industry is steadily changing, and this makes finding the right financial partner vital for dispensaries. He says they are looking toward the future, when marijuana will likely be legalized at the federal level.

President Biden announced this week that he would pardon thousands of Americans convicted of simple possession of marijuana. This comes after the Biden Administration announced it's intention of reconsidering the current status of marijuana as a schedule-one drug.