POSaBIT announced Friday plans to abandon its acquisition of three cannabis compliance software firms after a third-party proposal resulted in a “superior offer” to its original bid.
The Seattle-area fintech business disclosed in January a deal to pay $4 million to purchase MJ Platform, Leaf Data Systems, and Ample Organics from parent company Akerna. As part of the transaction, POSaBIT raised $11 million through a mix of debt and equity financing from Perga Capital.
The goal was to integrate the software platforms alongside POSaBIT’s point-of-sale (POS) systems, bringing so-called “seed-to-sale” data to the company’s customers. The move would have expanded POSaBIT’s workforce of 60 to about 100 employees and added more than 350 new clients.
However, the POSaBIT board and management unanimously agreed not to increase its offer to match the third-party bid, according to a press release early Friday morning. Last week the company announced it paid $7.5 million to acquire assets from the payments tech company Hypur.
In 2019 POSaBIT first emerged with its blockchain-based POS terminal, raising $2.1 million to help cannabis companies accept non-cash payments. It has moved most of its customers away from a “point-of-banking” model, which is being cracked down on by large ATM companies, to its PIN debit system, which is compliant with local and federal regulations.
POSaBIT, headquartered in Kirkland, Wash., debuted on the Canadian Stock Exchange in 2019 through a reverse takeover of publicly traded Foreshore Exploration Partners Corp. Its stock trades on the OTCQX over-the-counter market in the U.S.
The company reported a net loss of about $1.2 million in Q3, with a cash balance of $8.2 million. It forecasts revenue of $60-to-$63 million for fiscal year 2023.
