*By Jacqueline Corba*
For all the progress that legal marijuana has made in the United States, the country remains a murky place for companies seeking to enter a nascent market with complicated and inconsistent laws, said the co-founder and chief executive of North America's largest cannabis company.
Bruce Linton, the CEO of Canopy Growth Corporation, said his company was able to lead the way and become the first publicly listed pot company because it scrupulously follows the rules.
"United States is getting more complicated," Linton said in an interview Thursday with Cheddar. "I'm not hearing as clear as a voice as I did on what to do three years ago. It's louder, but it's definitely not clearer."
Canopy was the first cannabis firm to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange when it began trading last week. Its stock is up more than 20 percent since its debut, and the company has a market cap of more than $6 billion. That makes it the largest pot stock out there. The Canadian marijuana company operates 10 production facilities in nine countries where pot is legal.
Linton said he wants Canopy to be a leader in the industry. "This is about public policy and how we push the agenda, and then follow it," he said, adding legalization should come from following existing rules.
"If you want to be on the New York Stock Exchange, you need to be following all the rules," said Linton. "What we try to do is lead, and that almost always results in having us do most things first."
Canopy Growth Corporation is used to doing this first. Before listing on the NYSE, it was the first cannabis company to go public when it listed on the TSX Venture Exchange, a junior exchange in Canada, in 2014. It moved to the Toronto Stock Exchange two years later.
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/canopy-growth-ceo-on-nyse-debut).
If you have a flexible spending account, here's some short information for you so you don't leave money on the table.
With high healthcare costs, bills can quickly add up. In some cases, it is possible to negotiate your medical bills. Barak Richman, law professor at George Washington University, joined Cheddar News to discuss the easiest way to talk to medical debt companies about what's owed.
Millions of people have selected insurance plans for 2024 but sometimes navigating them can be tricky time consuming and expensive. Paula Pant, host of 'Afford Anything' podcast, joined Cheddar News to break down what's needed to know about their insurance plans.
The European Union is investigating Elon Musk's X over alleged illicit content and disinformation on its platform. Cheddar News breaks it all down and discusses what it could mean for users.
Adobe and Figma called off their $20 million merger, Southwest Airlines gets fined, Nippon Steel is buying U.S. Steel and oil and gas prices surge after a pause in shipments.
With more employees being called back to the office, many workers are suddenly protesting by being in the office for as little time as possible. As the term suggests, coffee-badging means coming in for just enough time to have a cup of coffee, show your face, and swipe your badge.
Japan's Nippon steel is buying U.S. Steel for $14.9 billion.
Southwest Airlines will pay a $35 million fine as part of a settlement over a 2022 holiday season disaster that saw the airline cancel thousands of flights and leave millions of people stranded.
Cheddar News' Need2Know is brought to you by Securitize, which helps unlock broader access to alternative investments in private businesses, funds, and other alternative assets. The private credit boom is here and the Hamilton Lane Senior Credit Opportunities Fund has tripled in assets under management in just six months from November 2022 through April this year. Visit Securitize.io to learn more.
Stocks opened slightly higher after Monday's opening bell after several weeks of gains as the year closes out.
