Snoop Dogg makes his first cannabis investment in Europe

The Portuguese company AceCann has just raised $15 million (13 million euros) thanks to a benefactor well-known in the cannabis world : American rapper Snoop Dogg. His investment fund, Casa Verde Capital, is making its very first investment in Europe here. The Doggfather led this fundraising round, alongside other investors such as Portugal's Lince Capital and the U.S.-based Advanced Grow Labs.

 «Having Casa Verde on board—given their operations in the United States—and, above all, being their very first investment in Europe, is a testament to our quality.», ", says the CEO of AceCann, quoted by Sifted, the «startup» website of the Financial Times.

In Portugal, the The medical cannabis market is in its early stages. With this fresh capital straight from Santa Monica, where Casa Verde is headquartered, the Lisbon-based company will build an indoor organic cannabis production facility; construction began in September. Located in Vendas Novas, this future 3,500-square-meter farm hopes to sell $15 million to $20 million worth of cannabis each year by 2024.

Early Legalization of Cannabis in Europe

But ‘Snoop’s’ venture capital firm isn’t doing this for free. Even though recreational cannabis isn’t legal in any European country, it’s laying the groundwork for the future. «Legalization is sweeping across Europe; we anticipate a rapid and exponential increase in demand for high-end cannabis flowers and extracts.», ", explains Yonatan Mayer, a partner at Casa Verde.

The British law firm Prohibition Partners plans that « Several countries are set to establish a legal cannabis market, », including the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Germany".

While waiting for full legalization, several European countries already allow the medical use of cannabis. This is the case in Germany and the United Kingdom, two economic powerhouses. This market is already worth 230 million euros, but is poised for massive growth: 3.2 billion euros by 2025, according to Prohibition Partners.

These figures would make Snoop Dogg and Casa Verde envious. The venture capital firm has been writing a lot of checks lately: e-commerce companies Dutchie and Leaflink, and the vaporizer company Indose. According to TechCrunch, Casa Verde’s portfolio of stocks is already worth $200 million.