Michael Auerbach On Launching A Cannabis SPAC With Jay-Z

Macro Hive Conversations With Bilal Hafeez

Michael Auerbach is the Founder of Subversive Capital, which is dedicated to investing in radical companies. He sits on the Board of Directors of Tilray, Inc. – the first Nasdaq-listed global cannabis company – and holds several directorships with companies that Subversive invests in. He also serves as a Senior Vice President at Albright Stonebridge Group, the global consulting firm chaired by former Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright. In this podcast, we discuss:

1. Launching a SPAC (SBVCF) with Jay-Z for the cannabis sector
2. The bullish case for the California cannabis market
3. Why Canada’s legalization of cannabis has still seen illicit trade increase
4. The financing challenge for cannabis companies
5. Why brands are where the value is
6. How the Biden administration will accelerate legalisation
7. The political and cultural reasons for banning cannabis over alcohol
8. The Portugal case of decriminalisation
9. Books that influenced Michael: Far From the Tree (Solomon), How to Change Your Mind (Pollan), Sapiens (Harari), History of Sexuality (Foucault), Glas (Derrida), King Leopold’s Ghost (Hochschild), Malcolm X, Say Nothing (Keefe)